Veteran first baseman Paul Goldschmidt is returning to the Yankees on a one-year deal, a source told MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand.
The club has not confirmed the agreement.
It’s been a highly decorated 15-year career for Goldschmidt, a seven-time All-Star with five Silver Slugger Awards and four Gold Glove Awards at first base, not to mention the 2022 NL MVP Award. Goldschmidt, 38, finished the 2025 season ranked second among active players in doubles (477) and RBIs (1,232), third in homers (372) and runs scored (1,280), and fourth in hits (2,190) and position player WAR, per Baseball-Reference (63.8).
He also has gone 11 consecutive seasons (2015-25) without a trip to the injured list, since sustaining a fractured hand on a hit-by-pitch in 2014. Goldschmidt’s 1,611 games played since 2015 are the most in the Majors, although his 145 games in 2025 were his fewest in that span (aside from 2020).
At the same time, Goldschmidt wasn’t able to maintain the same level of performance following that MVP season, especially over the past two years. After posting a .716 OPS, league-average 100 OPS+ and 1.3 bWAR for the Cardinals in 2024, Goldschmidt reached free agency and saw his six-season tenure in St. Louis come to an end when he signed a one-year deal with the Yankees. The big-picture results in the Bronx were similar, though: a .731 OPS, 104 OPS+ and 1.2 bWAR.
Below the surface, however, there was more volatility. Goldschmidt looked strong early (.889 OPS through May) but struggled to .610 the rest of the way. He crushed lefties (.981) but had issues against righties (.619). He hit significantly better on the road (.842) than at Yankee Stadium (.606).
Goldschmidt also seemed to trade off some power for contact at the plate. He hit the ball with much less authority than at any point in the Statcast Era (since 2015), but also slashed his whiff and strikeout rates compared to where they had been over the previous few seasons. It all led to a drop from 173 to 100 strikeouts, but also a drop from 22 home runs to 10, including just two after June 19. Now, further adjustments could be ahead for Goldschmidt in 2026.
