Yankees’ Brian Cashman talks shortstop decision, trade possibilities

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Yankees general manager Brian Cashman spent the majority of pregame batting practice on his phone Wednesday, pacing on the grass behind home plate at The Ballpark of the Palm Beaches.

Cashman always has a lot on his plate and plenty of calls to make, but this week is especially busy. The Yankees are in the process of finalizing their Opening Day roster, preparing to make a decision on who will begin the regular season as the starting shortstop.

Those conversations are reaching a tipping point. On Monday, Cashman and manager Aaron Boone took part in a comprehensive roster meeting, a discussion featuring several voices from the front office and coaching staff.

Asked when he hopes to make that decision — revealing who will jog out to shortstop at Yankee Stadium on March 30 — Cashman didn’t tip his hand, saying it’s going to come down to the “very end” of camp.

“Boonie and I will continue conversations, I can’t tell you when,“ Cashman said. “We still have some time on the clock. We’ve had a good camp. A lot of good things to see. But we have time on the clock to make the final call.

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As much as Cashman and the Yankees are choosing between three middle infielders, this appears to be a two-man race. Oswald Peraza is the favorite, a rookie looking to secure a full-time gig at the big-league level after making his debut last fall. Top prospect Anthony Volpe is right there with Peraza, a candidate to make the team after a stunning spring. Last year’s starter Isiah Kiner-Falefa is still officially in the mix, but he hasn’t played any shortstop since March 8.

In all likelihood, Peraza will start on Opening Day with Kiner-Falefa in a utility role. IKF has bounced around all spring, expanding his versatility to be more valuable after vacating his starting spot. That would leave Volpe to begin the year at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, a chance for the No. 1 prospect to develop for just a little longer before making the jump to the Bronx.

It isn’t necessarily that simple, though. The Yankees have a logjam of big-league infielders on their 40-man roster, a group that includes DJ LeMahieu, Gleyber Torres, Josh Donaldson and utilityman Oswaldo Cabrera, in addition to their shortstops.

Cashman insisted that the Yankees don’t need to make a trade, even with their surplus at those positions.

“We’ll make a move if there’s a benefit to doing so and if there isn’t then we won’t,” he said.

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Torres may very well be the most expendable asset in that group, especially if Kiner-Falefa sticks around in a utility role. Torres has more trade value, a 26-year-old with two more years of control coming off a resurgent, 24-homer season in 2022. Plus, Kiner-Falefa can be the backup at shortstop — it’s hard to envision a scenario where the Yankees use Torres at short after his productive transition to second base last year.

Now that the World Baseball Classic is over, there’s a chance we’ll see a flurry of moves across the league with teams making trades and players becoming available after failing to make MLB rosters.

“We’ll stay engaged with the other clubs,” Cashman said. “Who knows? We’ll see.”