Yankees Have Themselves to Blame for Jazz Chisholm Disaster

Things have gotten so bad for New York Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm that Aaron Boone decided to sit him in favor of Jose Caballero against Dylan Cease — a right-hander — during the Yankees' series finale versus the Toronto Blue Jays.

Chisholm pinch ran for Paul Goldschmidt in the seventh inning and ended up singling and then stealing a base, so his limited time on the field Sunday was productive.

On the season as a whole, however, Chisholm has been nothing short of an unmitigated disaster.

After declaring that he was aiming for a 50-50 campaign heading into 2026, Chisholm is slashing just .216/.295/.388 with 17 home runs and 48 RBI over 451 plate appearances. He has swiped 32 bags, but his .683 OPS overshadows that.

So does the fact that Chisholm — who owns a 31 percent strikeout rate and looks somewhat disengaged lately — has made countless mental errors on the basepaths this season ... like forgetting how many outs there are. Multiple times, too.

Chisholm is slated to hit free agency this offseason and said back in the spring that he was seeking $35 million annually. At this point, he'll be fortunate if someone gives him $20 million per year.

It's been a rough go for Chisholm in his second full campaign in the Bronx, and while there is no question that the two-time All-Star has been a major bust for the Yankees this year, New York also has itself to blame.

Why? Because the Yankees could have gotten themselves out of the Chisholm experiment at the MLB trade deadline. Luis Arraez was available, and he could have been had. New York could have made an attempt to ship Chisholm elsewhere and poach Arraez from the San Francisco Giants before the Philadelphia Phillies swooped in.

Easier said than done? Absolutely, especially given the impending free-agent status of both players. But by everything we know, the Yankees didn't even make an attempt.

Arraez would have represented a massive upgrade over Chisholm. I completely understand New York can just sign Arraez in free agency this winter, but if the Yanks had a beat on Aaron Judge's return by then (and it now seems like they did), wouldn't pursuing Arraez have been a more appealing option than going out and landing Luis Garcia Jr. and Heliot Ramos, two players who clearly don't fit?

Heck, using that logic, the Yankees wouldn't have even had to move Chisholm, because clearly, fit didn't matter to them earlier this month when they were just trying to add bats.

Regardless, New York has put far too much trust in Chisholm, who has always been a mercurial, inconsistent player.

Yes, Chisholm smashed 31 homers to go along with an .813 OPS last season. But he is a lifetime .243/.312/.443 hitter. Solid? Absolutely. Enough to put your full trust in, especially considering his antics? Certainly not.

Chisholm has also gone just 14-for-77 in a pair of playoff appearances in the Bronx, posting a .571 OPS during those two trips. What's more, he is batting .175 with runners in scoring position this season. Last year, in what was the best year of his career, he batted .208 in those situations.

The fact that it's now gotten to a point where Boone is electing to play Caballero — who has been a mere afterthought since George Lombard Jr.'s promotion — over Chisholm against a right-handed pitcher is very telling.

We keep hearing that Chisholm can go on a hot streak at moment's notice, and I suppose that's true. But we are now well into August, and we haven't seen any signs that the 28-year-old is coming out of this funk.

The Yankees trusted that Chisholm would be one of their offensive leaders heading into 2026. They even trusted him enough to make him untouchable at the trade deadline.

Obviously, that has proven to be a major mistake.