Jazz Chisholm’s fate with the Yankees seems to be decided.
The Bronx Bombers extended a $23.15 million qualifying offer to closer David Bednar on Monday, but did not offer one to the free agent infielder — neither move coming as a surprise considering the way 2026 panned out.
The campaign was a rough one for Chisholm, who didn’t produce the results the organization or he expected, and could result in the second baseman signing a pillow contract.
Chisholm’s talent has been displayed at times, but has been overshadowed by the lack of consistency and concentration, which is likely part of the reason for the expected split.
The Yankees could still re-sign him as a free agent, but that appears unlikely.
Chisholm has expressed a desire to remain with the Yankees going forward.
Following the Yankees’ loss in the ALDS, he told reporters, “This is where I want to be.”
If it is the end of his tenure in The Bronx, it came with boos from Yankees fans, which seemed to confuse Chisholm.
“It doesn’t hurt, it’s just confusing because it’s the playoffs and we’re trying to win games,” he said after the Yankees were swept by the Rays in the ALDS. “So you’re booing a guy that’s playing currently trying to help the team win. You’re hearing boos instead of trying to hype guys up. But at the end of the day, it didn’t hurt me because I’ve seen Aaron Judge get booed here too.”
And one former major league general manager believed that the “baggage” was too much for the Yankees to want to bring Chisholm back.
“[Ketel Marte] and free agent Jazz Chisholm, I love both their talents, don’t get me wrong,” Jim Bowden said Monday on Foul Territory. “But I put them kind of in that box where I’m just not sure that’s what I want to win with. I’d rather go younger, rather go with less baggage, rather go with more hard-nosed consistent players that come to the ballpark every day and play the game the right way, where I don’t have to have all the issues come involved.
“I don’t have to worry about teammates guiding them, I don’t have to worry about lollipops being licked at second base. … I just don’t want any part of that. These jobs are hard enough as it is, it’s hard to win games as it is. So I’d probably pass on both.”
