Yankees' Potential Luis Arraez Pursuit Slapped With Harsh Reality Check

The New York Yankees are in dire need of offensive help at numerous positions heading into the MLB offseason, and second base is one of them.

Jazz Chisholm is headed toward free agency, and the chances of the Yankees retaining him are as close to zero as you can possibly get. Anthony Volpe is first in line to take his job, but can New York trust his bat? Luis Garcia Jr. is also an option, but he is a miserable defender at second base.

So what about Luis Arraez?

Arraez is hitting the open market when free agency opens on Monday, and there is no question he will be one of the top bats available.

A three-time batting champion, Arraez batted .310 over 655 plate appearances between the San Francisco Giants and Philadelphia Phillies this season, and his lifetime .316 average is the highest among active players.

However, Chris Kirschner of The Athletic is not sure that Arraez is a fit.

Kirschner was asked about Arraez in a recent mailbag, and he did not seem wild about the idea of the 29-year-old in pinstripes.

His argument against Arraez is that he is too reliant on hits to get on base, and he also does not trust his defensive breakout in 2026. Kirschner prefers outfielder Steven Kwan as a contact-oriented hitter because of his walk rate.

I don't necessarily agree, however.

For as much of a "contact" hitter Kwan is, he is career .282 hitter. Batting average absolutely isn't everything and is largely an obsolete stat, but when you are talking about "contact," batting average is the metric you will be using.

Also, while Kwan's walk rate was at 13.3 percent this season, it was at 7.9 percent in 2025 and had never even hit 10 percent previously.

Not only that, but Kwan would require a trade, and the Cleveland Guardians would certainly ask for a king's ransom in return from the Yankees.

Meanwhile, New York could outright sign Arraez — who is also a lifetime .347 hitter with runners in scoring position — in free agency.

As you can tell, I am fully on board with the Yankees pursuing Arraez. He would be the perfect table setter for New York's power bats and is the type of classical leadoff hitter for whom the Yanks have long been searching.

And as a lefty bat, he might be able to hit some more home runs at Yankee Stadium.

Arraez has a career .775 OPS. Kwan is at .739. Arraez plays second base, which is a clear need for the Bronx Bombers. Kwan is an outfielder, which isn't.

I'm sorry, but I'm not seeing the argument for Kwan over Arraez.