New York Yankees They made it to the World Series for the first time since 2009. Thanks to their superstars Juan Soto and Aaron Judge, they cruised into the postseason with the AL East division title and a first-round bye. Both stars were considered candidates for the 2024 AL MVP, which is almost certain to go to the jury at season’s end.

However, in the postseason, Referee struggled tremendously. The rest of the roster, including some impending free agents, picked him up, leading the Yankees to beat the Cleveland Guardians and get into the World Series.

But these players are playing so well that they could effectively price themselves out of the Bronx in 2025. It will be nearly impossible for the Yankees to keep Juan Soto and also bring back the other free agents who are running this World Series. possible.

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One of the best acquisitions for the Yankees this year was also one of the most under-the-radar acquisitions for the Yankees. I’m not talking about Mark Leiter or Jazz Chisholm. I’m talking about left-handed reliever Tim Hill, who excelled with the Yankees this year after being a below-average pitcher throughout his pro career.

Before coming to the Yankees, Hill had a 5.87 ERA in 23 innings with the Chicago White Sox. With New York, Hill is 3-0 with a 2.05 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 0.4 HR/9 in 44 innings. He was truly dominant as a left-handed specialist in Aaron Boone’s bullpen.

In the postseason, Hill pitched seven innings for Boone, allowing six hits and one earned run. He has become one of the best lefties on the Yankees’ bench, and he also prices himself much higher than he was when the Yankees acquired him.

Hill made just under $2 million this year, and when the White Sox got rid of him, he looked like the type of pitcher who would sign for the league’s minimum in 2025. There is a team willing to pay Hill in the $4 million to $7 million per season range, which may be more than New York is willing to offer him.

Heading into the postseason, the Yankees appeared to have a good, not great, bullpen on their hands; this included turnover heavy Tommy Kahnle. It was stated that Kahnle was added to the two-year, $11.5 million contract he signed after the 2022 season. When Kahnle signed this contract, he was seen as a good savior, but not a great savior.

He had one of his best regular seasons ever in 2024. He posted a 2.11 ERA and 1.14 WHIP while allowing 6.3 hits per nine innings and striking out nearly 10 strikeouts per nine innings pitched. His production this year has been consistent and dominant.

But his dominance continued long after the regular season, as Kahnle threw 7.2 scoreless innings in the postseason this October. Despite his high walk rate, he became one of the best bullpen arms for the Yankees and used only one pitch: his changeup. Kahnle’s changeup is so good that he threw it more than 50 times in a row this October. The batsmen all know it’s coming but they can’t do anything about it.

But his play could be so good that his free-agent contract could be in the $7 million or $8 million per season range, which would put him out of the Yankees’ price range.

Once the regular season ended, it seemed like the Yankees would probably be totally fine letting second baseman Gleyber Torres hit free agency. Despite being one of the worst statistical interior defenders in the league, he had a very pedestrian offensive campaign. On the season, Torres slashed .257/.330/.378, the second-worst single-season OPS+ of his career.

New York had the option of letting him walk, moving Jazz Chisholm to second base and signing a star third baseman in free agency.

However, Torres completely improved his game by the end of the season. He is slashing .289/.389/.422 with more walks than strikeouts. Torres has been an ideal leadoff hitter for Boone’s team, setting the table for Soto and Judge better than anyone could have imagined.

At this point, it’s hard to imagine the Yankees not trying to bring him back aggressively this offseason, but they may be pricing himself out of the Bronx. New York doesn’t have the money to spend in free agency, but as they look to secure Soto for the next decade, they could invest a lot of money on Soto and turn to Torres, especially as his price tag increases. with this great postseason play.

In the dream world, the Yankees could get Torres back, but if he continues to move forward like this, New York may not be able to pay him as much as another team after re-signing Soto.