Yankees star opens himself up to selfish accusations with position change comment

New York Yankees infielder Gleyber Torres doesn't seem pleased at the thought of switching from second base after New York acquired the multi-positional Jazz Chisholm on Saturday.

"I'm a second baseman, so I play second," Torres bluntly told reporters over the weekend . When asked about playing third, the infielder said "I don't like it."

Torres has never played third base in the major leagues and featured a grand total of 187 innings at the position in the minor leagues. He's in a contract season, which may further increase his hesitancy to switch. The Yankees have been scuttling and acquired the speedy Chisholm to stop the skid. The team has struggled to the tune of a 13-24 record in its last 47 contests after racing to a 49-21 mark to start the season.

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Torres was primarily a shortstop in the minors in both the Yankees and Chicago Cubs farm systems. He alternated between short and second - mainly due the presence of former New York shortstop Didi Gregorius -- over his first few seasons before settling in second base permanently in 2022. Historically, Torres has rated as a stronger defender at second base.

The Yankees acquired Chisholm from the Miami Marlins on Saturday in exchange for three minor leaguers: catcher Augustin Ramirez, infielder Jared Serna, and utilityman Abrahan Ramirez. Agustin Ramirez profiles as a top-100 prospect in most recent 'top prospect' lists.

Chisholm has featured almost exclusively at third base this season for the Marlins after primarily playing centerfield last season. The versatile Bahamian slugger started his career as both a second basemen and shortstop and recorded his best career defensive metrics at second base.

On the season, Chisholm is slashing .248/.322/.404 with 13 home runs, good for a total 1.3 bWAR. After struggling earlier in the season, Torres has rebounded to improve his triple-slash to .237/.313/.368 with 10 home runs at a 0.9 bWAR.

"I went out and there and played center field for the first time last year," Chisholm said on Sunday . "It was pretty difficult at first, but I feel like I can go and play anywhere and help my team win. Especially a winning team, if they're asking me to go somewhere and help them win, I'm definitely going to do it."

In the Yankees 8-2 victory over the Boston Red Sox on Sunday, Chisholm hit fifth and started in centerfield while Torres hit sixth and manned second base

Torres indicated he discussed moving to third, a major week spot for New York all season, with manager Aaron Boone . "We had a conversation. Everything is still on the table. I think in a couple of days, I'm going to take some grounders at third, just in case, [so] I'm just kind of ready for anything."

“I want him to start working there. It’s not something he’s played,” Boone said. “He came up as a shortstop, and I feel like he has the skill set to do it. He’s open to doing it, but I want to see how that looks.

The Yankees have been linked to other infielders, namely third baseman Ryan McMahon on the Colorado Rockies. Look for New York to remain active up until the trade deadline on Wednesday.