Yankees Shouldn't Overreact to Trent Grisham's Slow Start

There were already concerns when Trent Grisham returned to the New York Yankees, and now, after a tough start, those critiques are getting louder.

New York Yankees center fielder Trent Grisham (12) reacts after a pitch during the third inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Every time it looks like Trent Grisham is gaining some traction, he struggles just a bit more. It's the first month of the season, and he is hitting .151/.298/.312 with a 78 wRC+. Despite this tepid production, the New York Yankees haven't given any indication that his job could be on the line, and haven't cut down on his at-bats the way they have with Ryan McMahon.

Of course, it's about as bad a start as he could have had. Grisham's return to the Yankees was already contentious. Fans and media alike criticized the move, saying that giving him the qualifying offer was shortsighted. That objection was even more pronounced when Grisham accepted it shortly after.

The feeling for those who didn't like the move was that Grisham's 2025 was a fluke, and that he would never have another season in which he hit 34 home runs and posted a 129 wRC+.

Anybody who was feeling that angst, that was a contract-year outlier, is probably feeling a bit like a baseball Nostradamus. After his big two-homer game against the Angels, which felt like it could have been a breakout party for Grisham, he has hit .133/.245/.267 with a 47 wRC+. That's six hits in his last 53 plate appearances.

Trent Grisham (2)

Opponent: Los Angeles Angels
Pitcher: Jordan Romano
Date: 04/13/2026 pic.twitter.com/xYlxXoAGQm

— Yankees Home Runs (@NYY_HR) April 14, 2026

Under the hood

It's hard to fault anybody for feeling frustrated, but this could be an early-season funk for Grisham, just coming at the worst possible time. He still has similar underlying numbers that he displayed last year. His Baseball Savant page still reads the same this season.

	2025	2026
xwOBA	.370	.362
xSLG	.498	.448
Avg. Exit Velocity	91.1 mph	91.8 mph
Barrel Rate	14.2%	14.3%
Hard Hit Rate	46.4%	52.9%
Walk Rate	14.1%	18.2%

Grisham is also making better contact, too, even if he is swimming in the Mendoza waters. Last season, Grisham's 30.4% squared-up rate ranked in the 84th percentile. His 41.6% squared-up rate is now in the 100th percentile, making him one of the best in the sport at getting the barrel to a ball.

Fair or unfair, Grisham is being judged by a contract that is really just a Hal Steinbrenner issue more than anything, and by a 2025 season in which he was consistent all year. He never had an extended slide like this one, and if he did, his cumulative numbers were probably so good that it would be hard to notice a dip in production. Since it's the first month of the season, that putrid batting average and lackluster OPS are on every LED board across America.

It also doesn't help Grisham's case that he got off to a robust start last year. The final piece of the Juan Soto trade hit .292/.370/.639 with a 178 wRC+ in April 2025. In a lot of ways, that start is just as fluky as this one, except it's a level of production that has swung in the exact opposite direction.

New York Yankees center fielder Trent Grisham (12) circles the bases after hitting a three run home run against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the fifth inning at PNC Park. | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The contact he's making is too good for Grisham to struggle like this all year. It's not to say it can't happen. Baseball is ruthless. Still, this is the kind of situation in which one day we're talking about how frustrating Grisham is and the next he's off to a wicked hot streak. Baseball is a balancing act in that way.