New York Yankees

New York Yankees outfielder Taylor Trammell is on the move to Houston, as the Astros are acquiring the 27-year-old, according to The Athletic's Chandler Rome.

Trammell played in five games for the Yankees this season and recorded one hit in one at-bat.

The 2016 first-round pick is being traded to the Astros for cash, per MLB Network's Joel Sherman.

He spent three years with Seattle to begin his major league career, posting a .168 batting average with 15 home runs and 39 RBI. New York selected him off waivers from the Los Angeles Dodgers in April and signed him to a one-year, $800,000 contract.

The left fielder did not play in an MLB game with the Yankees since May. He spent most of the 2024 season with the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, where he posted a .256 batting average with 18 home runs and 63 RBI.

The New York Yankees and pitcher Gerrit Cole have until Monday at 5 PM ET to decide whether to add a fifth year at $36 million to his remaining four-year, $144 million contract or allow him to become a free agent, according to MLB.com's Mark Feinsand.

The Monday deadline will mark the end of the MLB's "quiet period."

The 34-year-old started his MLB career with the Pittsburgh Pirates before being traded to the Astros in 2018 where he spent two seasons.

Cole has started in 125 games for New York, where he has gone 59-28 with a 3.12 ERA during the regular season. He has recorded 915 strikeouts in 759 innings.

He won the 2023 American League Cy Young award by going 15-4 with a 2.63 ERA, striking out 222 batters in 209 innings.

During the Yankees' World Series run this year against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Cole pitched 12.2 innings, allowing eight hits, six runs and one home run, while recording 10 strikeouts.

The New England Patriots had some fun at the New York Yankees' expense on Saturday.

The Los Angeles Dodgers used the Patriots' team plane to return home after defeating the Yankees in the 2024 World Series.

New England called out New York in a post on X, referencing the celebratory call of Boston Red Sox legend David Ortiz after Yankees losses.

The Dodgers used New England's plane because they went through the company that charters the Patriots planes when they're not in use by the team, via Matt Geagan of CBS News.

The rivalry between the Yankees and Red Sox is extremely well-known, with tensions especially high after Ortiz arrived in Boston ahead of the 2003 season. In his 14 years with the organization, Boston and New York combined to win the American League East division 10 times.

The Patriots share a division with the New York Jets, but they also have history with the Giants. Both teams faced off in Super Bowl 42 and Super Bowl 46, with New York winning both times.

While Boston ultimately missed the postseason in 2024 with a record of 81-81, it's not difficult to imagine Red Sox fans and Patriots supporters rooting for the Dodgers to take down the Yankees in the Fall Classic.

Los Angeles defeated New York in five games, winning the final contest at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday. Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman was named World Series MVP, capping off an incredible performance headlined by a walk-off grand slam in Game 1.

Los Angeles secured its eighth title and its first since 2020. Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani also earned the first championship of his career in his inaugural year with the organization.

The Patriots will be back on their own plane as they begin a brief two-game road trip, starting with a matchup against the Tennessee Titans on Sunday. New England owns a record of just 2-6 this season, but the team snapped a six-game losing streak with a win over the Jets in Week 8.

New York Yankees starting pitcher Gerrit Cole will reportedly exercise the opt-out clause in his contract, forgoing the remaining four years and $144 million to become a free agent.

However, the Yankees now have the choice to void that opt-out by guaranteeing him $36 million for the 2029 season. That would keep Cole in town for the next five years at $180 million. ESPN's Kiley McDaniel and Jeff Passan reported the news on Saturday.

According to Passan, "The expectation is that the Yankees will add the $36 million to keep Cole at the top of their rotation and ensure that they don't potentially lose multiple integral players, with star outfielder Juan Soto hitting free agency."

The Yankees signed Cole to a nine-year, $324 million contract in Dec. 2019, setting the record for most total money (and salary) ever given to a pitcher. The deal included an opt-out after five years and a no-trade clause.

From 2020-2024, Cole went 59-28 with a 3.12 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 10.8 K/9 rate over 125 starts. He led the American League with 16 wins in 2021 and a 2.63 ERA in 2023. Cole also paced the majors with 257 strikeouts in 2022 and a 0.98 WHIP in 2023. During that year, Cole also won his first-ever Cy Young award.

In 2024, Cole began the year on the 60-day injured list due to inflammation to his right elbow. He was activated off the IL in June and went 8-5 with a 3.41 ERA (1.13 WHIP) over 17 starts, striking out 99 in 95 innings.

In this year's playoffs, Cole went 1-0 with a 2.17 ERA (1.28 WHIP), striking out 22 in 29 innings over five starts. With Cole as their ace, the Yankees reached the World Series for the first time since 2009 before falling to the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games.

Cole has never made it a secret how much he loves being a Yankee. He was a Yankee fan growing up, and his dream of wearing the pinstripes became reality five years ago.

Cole still loves being a Yankee, as evidenced in part by his remarks in August.

There's no proof suggesting that stance has changed. Ultimately, the Cole opt-out could make him a free agent, but the ball is now in the Yankees' court.

Juan Soto is the most coveted free agent in baseball this off-season and as such, is expected to command as much as $600 million. The New York Yankees would love to have him back, especially after his superb play at the plate helped guide the Bronx Bombers back to the World Series for the first time since 2009.

With so many teams coming after him, though, there is no guarantee the Yankees can get the deal done, which begs the question: where does the team turn if they cannot convince Soto to run in back in pinstripes next season?

The answer is clearer than one might think.

Jon Heyman of The New York Post reported that the Yankees have interest in switch-hitter Anthony Santander of the rival Baltimore Orioles. While he may not have the name value of Soto, Santander is coming off of an exceptional season at the plate in which he delivered 140 hits, 102 RBI, 91 runs, and 44 home runs.

His fielding percentage in right field was .993, one of the highest of his career.

He did not produce the number of hits or RBI as Soto this past season, but was four better in terms of home runs and was arguably a better defensive player than his peer.

While he will not receive the hype, pomp, and circumstance that Soto will, Santander is ever bit the quality addition that the 26-year-old will be, without a price tag that could handcuff a franchise for the next seven years.

The Yankees could conceivably get a deal done with Santander (valued at five years, $96 million by Spotrac), then turn around and potentially add Alex Bregman of the Astros at third base or upgrade their rotation with a quality starter, all for the same price that Soto would have cost them.

Should the Bronx Bombers try for their All-Star and the guy who helped them claim their first American League pennant in over a decade?

Absolutely, but if he is not willing to sign, turning their attention elsewhere and taking a great clubhouse fit like Santander, who was the heart and soul of the Orioles franchise throughout his career, would be a consolation prize that every single team in MLB would love to have available to them.

That he is a game-changing slugger who can take any pitcher deep out of the park, only makes him that much more appealing to a team that leaves and breathes on the long ball.

The New York Yankees exercised the team's 2025 contract option for right-hander Luke Weaver worth $2.5 million on Friday, according to Bryan Hoch of MLB.com.

Weaver wrapped up an impressive second season with the Yankees in 2024, excelling as a bullpen option throughout the first half of the year before stepping up as New York's closer before the start of the postseason following struggles by Clay Holmes.

He also became a consistent option for the Yankees throughout their run to the World Series, making 12 postseason appearances in 2024.

Weaver finished the regular season with a 2.89 ERA in 62 appearances, recording 103 strikeouts compared to 26 walks in 84 innings of work. He also registered four saves in four opportunities.

The 31-year-old wasn't flawless in the postseason, blowing a save during New York's matchup with the Cleveland Guardians in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series.

Still, he was often put into situations with runners in scoring position and remained effective overall. In 15.1 innings pitched during the postseason, he compiled a 1.76 ERA to go along with 16 strikeouts and two walks.

Weaver was initially claimed by the Yankees off waivers in Sept. 2023. He became a free agent during the ensuing offseason and re-signed with New York on a $2 million deal before his breakout 2024 campaign.

His $2.5 million salary for the 2025 season is a steal for the Yankees if he's able to replicate his 2024 production, as it ranks No. 12 among all closers in the majors (via Spotrac).

Following his strong finish to the regular season and dominant postseason run to help New York win its first AL pennant since 2009, Weaver is expected to open the 2025 season as the Yankees' full-time closer.

The New York Yankees' defensive miscues in the decisive Game 5 of the World Series did not come as a surprise to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Per Joel Sherman of the New York Post, Dodgers coaches and scouts told their players in meetings before the series began that the Yankees were "talent over fundamentals" on the field and they had a tendency to hurt themselves with mistakes.

This isn't a slight to the Yankees as much as it is just a flaw in how the roster was constructed. They were tied with the Houston Astros for last in MLB in percentage of extra bases taken, ranked in the bottom half of the league in defensive runs saved at first base and second base, and 15th collectively in the outfield.

Even though their third basemen rated well overall in defensive runs saved, they had moved Jazz Chisholm Jr. to the position in July after he was acquired from the Miami Marlins. He had never played the hot corner before in his MLB career.

The Yankees also made baserunning blunders throughout the postseason. They ran themselves out of innings in the ALCS against the Cleveland Guardians to the point that radio announcer John Sterling said on the air they "run the bases like drunks."

They were able to get away with those mistakes against a team like Cleveland that didn't have the power in the lineup to consistently take advantage of them.

The Dodgers have arguably the best lineup in the league and are more than capable of capitalizing when they get extra outs. The Yankees gave them six outs in the fifth inning of Game 5 by committing two errors and giving up an infield hit to Mookie Betts when Gerrit Cole didn't cover first base.

Los Angeles used the extra outs to score five runs that tied the game after Cole had no-hit the NL champs through the first four innings.

The Yankees made it through a weak American League in the playoffs on the strength of their star power, like Cole, Aaron Judge, Juan Soto and Giancarlo Stanton. When they finally ran into a team that could match their talent, the series turned into a matter of fundamental execution.

In that area, the Dodgers had a decided advantage. They showed it throughout the series and are celebrating the World Series, while the Yankees will spend the offseason thinking about what might have been.

Actor Wendell Pierce said he left Game 5 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium due to unruly fan behavior.

Pierce, whose acting credits include The Wire, Treme and Elsbeth, posted Wednesday on X that he "just left the Yankees game because I was talking to a Dodgers fan and people were throwing things at me." He called it "the worst experience ever."

Fans of the Dodgers and Yankees both generated some controversy this postseason.

The second game of the National League Division Series matchup between Los Angeles and the San Diego Padres was briefly brought to a halt after fans in the outfield seats threw objects at Padres outfielders Jurickson Profar and Fernando Tatis Jr.

Then in the World Series, two Yankees fans were ejected after interfering with Dodgers star Mookie Betts as he made a catch along the right field wall. One of the fans attempted to pry the ball out of Betts' glove, while another grabbed his right wrist.

Los Angeles brought the 2024 Fall Classic to a close with an improbable comeback from a 5-0 deficit in the Big Apple. A pair of sacrifice flies brought home the tying and winning runs in the eighth inning as the Dodgers captured their eighth title.