Oswaldo Cabrera's Return Changes Yankees Infield Depth

Oswaldo Cabrera is finally making his long awaited New York Yankees return.

May 2, 2025; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees third baseman Oswaldo Cabrera (95) throws the ball to first base for an out during the fourth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

A catastrophic injury a year ago held New York Yankees infielder Oswaldo Cabrera to just 34 games played.

Coming off back to back years with 100+, Cabrera's season was cut short in May against the Seattle Mariners.

After a grueling offseason and recovery process, Cabrera is set to be the Yankeees shortstop in a Spring Training battle against their division rival, the Tampa Bay Rays.

Cabrera's return is interesting for quite a few reasons, but seeing him at shortstop is the most interesting of all. The Yanekes infield depth is beginning to come together, it's just a matter of who they want to play where when it matters the most.

Oswaldo Cabrera is Not an Everyday Shortstop

Oswaldo Cabrera will be starting at SS tomorrow night, his first game action since breaking his ankle and suffering ligament damage last May.

— Greg Joyce (@GJoyce9) March 5, 2026

The Anthony Volpe injury made this team reflect on their shortstop situation, one that caused them to test third basemen Ryan McMahon out at short. McMahon has been getting a ton of reps at that position when a guy like Jose Caballero or top prospect George Lombard Jr. isn't playing.

First and second base are set with Ben Rice, Paul Goldschmidt, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. but things get interesting on the other side of the infield. McMahon came to this team as the expected everyday third baseman, but now the team is overthinking things and may have a bit too many moving parts.

Keep in mind, Cabrera has played just 15 career games at shortstop. He's started 12 of those, but that's nowhere near the 108 starts he's made at third base. Moving players around in the infield isn't as easy as it seems, especially when Opening Day is less than a month away.

Yankees Must Figure Out Third Base/Shortstop Situation

Mar 5, 2026; Tampa, Florida, USA; New York Yankees shortstop Ryan McMahon (19) throws to first against the Minnesota Twins in the fourth inning during spring training at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

At this point Volpe is going to have to earn his role back as the team is testing far too many things out to just give it to him in May or whenever he makes his return. Volpe, 24, is far younger than McMahon, 31, and Cabrera, 27. It doesn't seem like Cabrera is going to have to fight too much to make the Opening Day roster, but he knows his role is on the bench until someone needs a day off or something like that.

Amed Rosario is another utility player the Yankees have at their disposal. It's obvious Lombard isn't making the Opening Day roster, so it comes down to how many infielders this team wants on the bench. Knowing they'll have JC Escarra and Goldschmidt occupying two of those spots, it comes down to if they'd rather have an outfielder in the mix as well or just go with both Cabrera and Rosario and figure it out from there.

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