Why Oswald Peraza Should Be The Starting Shortstop

This spring, the Yankees are having a position battle at shortstop. This is happening between Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Anthony Volpe, and Oswald Peraza. Kiner-Falefa was the starter last year, Volpe has yet to make his debut, and Peraza saw time in 2022 as well. While Kiner-Falefa has the experience and Volpe is a more highly regarded prospect; I believe the Yankees should go with Oswald Peraza at shortstop.

The Failed Isiah Kiner-Falefa Placeholder Plan

Last offseason, Isiah Kiner-Falefa was part of a three-team trade between the Rangers, Yankees, and Twins. Kiner-Falefa was on the Twins for a day before being shipped over to New York with Josh Donaldson and Ben Rortvedt. It is safe to say that Isiah Kiner-Falefa didn’t have a great year for the Yankees. He finished 2022 batting .261 with just four home runs and 48 RBI in 142 games played. Kiner-Falefa also only had an OPS of .641. He also was awful in the field as he committed 17 errors last season. Only Javier Baez, Bo Bichette, Jeremy Pena, and Bobby Witt Jr. made more fielding miscues. However, he did give the Yankees a stolen base threat as he swiped 22 bases last year.

All season long, Isiah Kiner-Falefa never looked comfortable playing shortstop. He would double-clutch his throws at times which allowed more base runners thus making it harder on the pitchers. It can be argued that his fielding struggles cost the Yankees game three of their ALDS matchup against Cleveland. Aaron Boone would eventually bench Kiner-Falefa for the rest of the ALDS. His fielding never got better in the Yankees ALCS matchup against the Astros.

This spring, Kiner-Falefa has struggled. He is currently batting just .167 with one hit, one RBI, and an OPS of just .666. In four weeks, the Yankees be breaking camp to head back up to New York for Opening Day against the Giants. The numbers he’s putting up just in spring training aren’t going to cut it. The Yankees traded for Kiner-Falefa to be a placeholder guy at shortstop until younger prospects were ready to contribute. The Yankees reportedly tried to shop Kiner-Falefa around but were unwilling to find a trade partner. So far this spring, Volpe and Peraza look ready to make an impact at the big-league level meaning Kiner-Falefa is now expendable.

Oswald Peraza Is Ready

Oswald Peraza appeared in 18 games last season for the Yankees in September. In that short September cameo, Peraza slashed .306/.404/.429 and had an OPS of .832 with a home run and two RBI. Unlike Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Oswald Peraza was stellar in the field. In the 12 games he played shortstop, he didn’t commit an error. Peraza’s 18-game audition was enough for him to be added to the Yankees postseason roster. He appeared in three ALCS games but didn’t register a hit.

With four weeks to go in spring training, Peraza has already distanced himself from Isiah Kiner-Falefa. This spring, Peraza is hitting .333 with no home runs or RBI and an OPS of .889. He has also stolen two bases. Those numbers are clearly much better than what Kiner-Falefa has put up this spring.

While Anthony Volpe has been very impressive this spring, I don’t think he’ll be brought up right out of camp. Volpe has only appeared in 22 games at Triple-A and the Yankees will probably want him to have more seasoning. New York’s front office will want to manipulate his service time as well. There are also questions on whether Volpe can play shortstop in the big leagues because of his arm strength.

Oswald Peraza has already proven that he is ready to be the next shortstop for the Yankees. In his short cameo, he looked very comfortable at the position. He also proved he can hit Major League pitching as well. Isiah Kiner-Falefa has clearly been outplayed this spring by Oswald Peraza. While Volpe will be called up soon, Peraza has shown that he can be a productive player already.

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