Do New York Yankees Have Best Bench Player in Baseball?

This New York Yankees outfielder has taken his game to another level.

Apr 14, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees center fielder Trent Grisham (12) hits a home run against the Kansas City Royals during the fifth inning at Yankee Stadium. / Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

It's no secret that the New York Yankees have a great outfield. Between Aaron Judge, Cody Bellinger, Jasson Dominguez and Ben Rice, they've got some guys who can hit.

If anything, they have too much depth out there, making it difficult for Aaron Boone to find regular at-bats for everyone.

Just look at Trent Grisham, who might be the best bench player in baseball.

After going 2-for-4 with a solo homer and a walk against the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday, Grisham is batting .326/.404/.674 (207 OPS+) with five homers, 12 RBI and 0.9 WAR in 19 games. Those are Aaron Judge, MVP-type numbers.

However, the 28-year-old centerfielder doesn't even start everyday. Of the 19 games he's played, he's come off the bench in seven of them.

Based on his recent results, though, Grisham clearly deserves to be in the lineup everyday. Over his last 73 games dating back to last June, he's slashing .247/.329/.495 (132 wRC+) with 13 homers and 40 RBI. Over the course of a full season, he could hit 30 homers.

Trent Grisham since June of 2024:

73 Games
13 HR
40 RBI
.247/.329/.495
.823 OPS
132 wRC+

One of the best bench players in the league
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— Evil Empire (@octoberstanton) April 19, 2025

Grisham has taken a major step forward recently after struggling over the last three seasons. From 2022 to 2024, he batted just .191/.298/.353 (84 OPS+), falling off after a strong start to his career.

However, he seems to have gotten his groove back after coming to the Yankees from the San Diego Padres in the Juan Soto deal. His left-handed power stroke makes him a good fit for Yankee Stadium, where he's a career .202/.303/.430 hitter with seven homers and 18 RBI in 48 games.

Throw in his defense (two Gold Glove awards) and baserunning, and he has the potential to be an Aaron Hicks-type player for New York.

Grisham also has a reverse platoon split, as his career OPS is 50 points higher against lefties than righties, so there's no need to sit him against southpaws.

Having too many good outfielders is certainly a good problem for Boone to have. Dominguez and Rice are still relatively unproven and could fall off, while Bellinger is off to a terrible start and is notoriously inconsistent. Judge has a history of injuries as well, so it never hurts to have too much depth.

Grisham's going to be a free agent after this season, however, so Brian Cashman may want to consider trading him for pitching help to help clear the outfield logjam if he becomes expendable. If Grisham stays healthy and keeps hitting like this all season, he's likely going to fetch a pretty penny on the open market this winter, and New York probably doesn't want to pay that much for a bench bat.

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