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The season is over, but probably the biggest decisions for the Yankees are just beginning.

After being swept by the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League Division Series, New York enters a low season full of questions about players, coaches and the direction that an organization will take that continues to seek its first championship since 2009.

In a new edition of The Yankists, Edwin Morel and Daniel Cuevas analyzed the main news surrounding the team: future free agents, the importance of David Bednar, the jazz situation Chisholm Jr., the continuity of Aaron Boone, the questions around Brian Cashman and the changes that He needs the roster to seriously compete for the World Series in 2027.

The general message is clear.

The Yankees have a good base.

But after another disappointing October, keeping everything the same doesn't seem enough either.

The Yankees face numerous contractual decisions

One of the first topics analyzed in the Yankees was the number of important players whose future will have to be resolved during this winter.

Among the main names are Jazz Chisholm Jr., Trent Grisham, David Bednar, Paul Goldschmidt, Tim Hill, Amed Rosario, Ryan Yarbrough and Paul Blackburn.

Not everyone represents the same priority and will not have the same market.

But every decision can alter another part of the roster.

If Jazz doesn't come back, New York will have to solve second base.

If Grisham leaves, another need appears in the gardens.

If Bednar signs with another team, the organization would lose the pitcher who ended up becoming his main option to close games.

And if Goldschmidt continues his career out of the Bronx, the Yankees will have even more freedom to reorganize the first baseman and designated batter's turns.

David Bednar may be one of the priorities

The David Bednar case deserves special attention.

The right was established as one of the most reliable pieces of the bullpen and enters the market in a favorable position.

For the Yankees, conserving it would allow 2027 to start with a clear answer for the final entries.

The problem will be the price.

Bednar will be 32 years old and will arrive at a free agency where established relievers usually generate important contracts.

New York will have to decide if it is worth committing several years and a considerable amount of money in a closer or if you prefer to use those resources to meet other needs.

From the Yankees, the analysis is that Bednar should be a priority, but not at any cost.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. represents a much more complicated decision

Jazz Chisholm Jr. also comes to a decisive moment.

The second baseman has expressed that he would like to continue as Yankee, but his 2026 season left arguments in both directions.

Its speed is still a special tool.

It also offers power and defensive capacity.

But there were problems of offensive consistency, questionable decisions and a postseason that again increased the debate around their future.

The Yankees could extend a qualified offer to you, explore a new contract, or allow it to fully reach the market.

The decision will also be related to other internal alternatives.

Luis García Jr. could return to second base.

Anthony Volpe is also part of the options for the inner box.

and George Lombard Jr. seems to have placed himself in a favorable position to continue receiving important opportunities.

Trent Grisham and Paul Goldschmidt also await decisions

Grisham and Goldschmidt represent two different cases.

Grisham offers center field defense, occasional power and experience, but the Yankees will have to determine if their production justifies keeping it within the next team's structure.

Goldschmidt, meanwhile, has already confirmed that he wants to continue playing.

The veteran first baseman was especially successful in front of left-handed pitchers and could continue to be useful in a specific role.

But Ben Rice needs regular shifts and New York also has to find a way to manage Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge at the same time.

That can turn the first base and the designated hitter into one of the main winter puzzles.

Joe Girardi backs Boone, but points to a bigger problem

Another of the strong themes of the show was the opinion of Joe Girardi.

The former leader of the Yankees came out in defense of Aaron Boone after the elimination and considered that 2026 could have been one of his best years driving the team given the injuries and difficulties he faced during the season.

But Girardi also made an important criticism.

The problem, according to his analysis, goes beyond the manager.

He talked about execution.

of fundamentals.

and especially the responsibility of the players.

The Yankees made mistakes during the postseason that cannot be explained simply by a decision of the leader.

There were defensive errors.

errors running the bases.

poorly executed shifts.

and opportunities that the team itself let escape.

The discussion around Boone, therefore, cannot erase the responsibility of those who are on the ground.

Does Aaron Boone continue?

The question continues to divide the fans.

Boone has kept the Yankees constantly in competition.

New York has reached the postseason in eight of his nine seasons as a leader and reached the World Series in 2024.

But the championship still doesn't show up.

After nine seasons, that reality weighs more and more.

The first signs point to Boone to continue in 2027.

It has support within the organization.

Aaron Judge publicly defended him.

Brian Cashman has also backed his work.

And Girardi considers that firing the leader would not automatically solve the problems that were exposed during this postseason.

Aaron Judge asks Yankees to bet with everything

Perhaps the most important statements of this whole start of the offseason came from the captain.

Aaron Judge left a direct message to Hal Steinbrenner, Brian Cashman, and the main office.

He wants the Yankees to identify their weaknesses and do whatever it takes to correct them.

Judge understands that you can not get every star available or solve everything exclusively through large contracts.

But he also made it clear that wearing the Yankees uniform means trying to win the championship every season.

Being competitive is not enough.

Winning many matches during the regular season also cannot become the ultimate success measure.

Judge wants a team built to win in October.

Brian Cashman will also be under pressure

For the same reason, the offseason should not be analyzed only around Boone.

Brian Cashman will be under the microscope again.

Roster construction decisions are mainly in the main office.

The team needs to determine which players correctly complement Judge.

How to improve defense.

What to do with the inner box.

How to maintain a deep bullpen.

and how to take advantage of a rotation that should continue to be one of the main strengths of the team.

The Yankees do not necessarily need to be rebuilt.

They need to build better around what they already have.

Cam Schlittler represents one of the great reasons to believe

Among all the questions there is also an extremely positive reality.

Cam Schlittler has just completed an extraordinary season.

The right-hander finished 2026 with a 14-6 record, a 1.95 ERA, 239 strikeouts and Whip of 0.92 in 193 innings and two thirds.

Those numbers place him directly inside the conversation for the American League Cy Young Award.

And for New York there is something even more important than any individual prize.

Schlittler is becoming a starter around which a championship rotation can be built.

Together with Gerrit Cole, Max Fried, Carlos Rodón and the other options of the pitching corps, the Yankees do not start the winter from scratch.

The new young core changes the landscape

The organization also now has a young generation that is beginning to establish itself.

Ben Rice.

George Lombard Jr.

Spencer Jones.

Cam Schlittler.

and other players who will continue to fight for opportunities.

That should allow the Yankees to build differently.

Not everything has to be solved by buying stars.

Part of the next champion team has to develop within the organization itself.

The key will be to correctly identify which young people are ready to take responsibility and surround them with the right veterans.

The Yankists: Something has to change, but not everything is broken

During the program, Edwin Morel and Daniel Cuevas analyzed precisely that difference.

The Yankees were good enough to win 93 games.

They have high-level players.

They have pitching.

They have interesting young people.

And they have Aaron Judge.

That means we're not talking about an organization that needs to completely destroy your roster.

But it can't act like the sweep in front of Tampa Bay just being bad luck.

The championship drought continues.

The execution failures appeared again.

The offensive disappeared in important moments.

And the defense made mistakes again that a team with world-series aspirations cannot afford in October.

The changes have to start by identifying why those same problems continue to appear.

The winter of 2027 can define the coming years of Yankees

New York is now entering a decisive stage.

There will be players coming back.

Others will leave.

There can be important changes through free agency and exchanges.

There will also be decisions about Boone, Cashman and different members of the coaching staff.

But regardless of the names, the pressure remains the same.

Aaron Judge wants another championship.

The fans too.

And after another early elimination, the Yankees will have to show this winter that they understood the message.

The 2027 season began, in practice, from the moment Tampa Bay got the last out of ALDS.

Now it's time to find out what the Yankees will do to prevent next October from ending exactly the same way.