According to FanSided’s Robert Murray, the Yankees are interested in free agency Garrett Cooper. He was dismissed by the Red Sox a week ago and entered the free agent market. Cooper is aiming for his third team in the 2024 season. He made the Cubs’ season-opening roster after signing a minor league contract. Cooper produced a solid.270/.341/.432 line in 12 games for Chicago, but the Cubs designated him for assignment in April. The front staff was clearly concerned that he had struck out 13 times in his first 41 plate appearances.
In 24 games with the Red Sox, the right-handed first baseman had a batting line of.171/.227/.229. In 75 plate appearances, he struck out 22 times and drew three walks. Boston decided to remain with Dominic Smith over Cooper when Masataka Yoshida returned from the disabled list.
Cooper’s strikeout rate has risen to 29.1% of his plate appearances since the start of last season. He has a.242/.297/.395 batting line in 573 plate appearances for four different teams throughout that time. Prior to it, Cooper was a prolific Marlins middle-of-the-order batter. Between 2019 and 22, he hit.274/.350/.444, earning a spot in the ’22 All-Star Game. Cooper was a former Yankee. In 2017, New York acquired him from the Brewers while he was still in Triple-A. The Yankees promoted him for 13 games late in the season before moving him the following offseason. They sent Cooper and Caleb Smith to the Fish for then-prospect Michael King, which worked out very nicely.
The Yanks lost Anthony Rizzo for at least two months when he broke his arm in a collision at first base over the weekend. They called up Ben Rice in the wake of Rizzo’s injury. The 25-year-old has played in his first three big league contests, collecting two singles and a pair of walks in 11 plate appearances. Cooper could theoretically pair with the lefty-swinging Rice in a platoon, though the Yankees already have DJ LeMahieu as a potential right-handed complement.
