Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across Major League Baseball. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Yankees fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.
The offseason came earlier for the Yankees than they or the fans would’ve liked, but now their focus is on building the best 2026 roster that they can. There’s plenty of moves to be made, but one of the biggest focus points is figuring out what their outfield will look like going forward. Trent Grisham and Cody Bellinger are both going into free agency barring a last-minute qualifying offer acceptance for the former, should the team extend it. Only one of them is likely to be re-signed, if that, and there’s a big name on the market that could draw their attention instead.
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Kyle Tucker is the jewel of the 2026 class, the former Houston outfielder playing out the last year of his contract with the Cubs last season after being traded last offseason. The Yankees were interested in him then, but couldn’t come to terms with Houston on a package for the four-time All-Star. Now, they have a chance for a bit of a re-do, with Tucker available for just money this time. Of course, that contract is expected to be massive, and the Yankees have been very particular with who they open up the purse strings for these days. With all of that in mind, who do the fans think the team should prioritize?

The overwhelming majority of you prefer coming to terms with a new deal for Bellinger instead of pursuing Tucker. Bellinger’s bat surged back to life in the Bronx, posting a 125 wRC+ en route to a 4.9 fWAR season where he locked down a spot in the top half of the lineup. Coupled with his very good 2023 with Chicago, Bellinger looks a lot more like a stable All-Star than he did when he left the Dodgers following a dismal 2022. He’s not the guy that won the 2019 NL MVP, but he’s a solid contributor and a dangerous left-handed bat that can help protect Aaron Judge.
A few wanted to subvert this debate entirely and focus instead on the pitching staff. It’s an area that will need some attention, for sure: the bullpen was a rollercoaster all season long even after bringing in reinforcements, and the rotation will be understaffed for at least the first month of the season. Whether there’s enough out there to do a full overhaul of the staff remains to be seen, but the ‘pen will likely get a major facelift heading into 2026 at the very least.

Turning our attention over to the final bit of the 2025 season, the Dodgers and Blue Jays are set to kick off the World Series tonight and public opinion is leaning on the defending champs becoming the first team since the late 90s Yankees dynasty to repeat. The Dodgers looked vulnerable at times this year, suffering a midseason slump and dealing with injuries to their pitching staff as has often been the case, but they’ve been on fire since getting healthy in October. They dismantled the Reds in the Wild Card Series, bested the second-seeded Phillies in the NLDS (and won the series in excruciating fashion for Philadelphia fans), and then swept the Brewers aside in the NLCS without much effort.
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On the other side, the Blue Jays got to sit and wait for the Yankees in the ALDS before jumping all over them in the first two games, winning in four. Their ALCS was a different story, as they battled tooth and nail with the Mariners in a seven-game bout before George Springer’s three-run shot late in Game 7 put them ahead for good. Toronto will enter as the underdogs to Los Angeles’ Goliath-esque roster, but they stand a chance so long as Springer and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. continue their red-hot postseason runs. It’s a pretty unappealing matchup for Yankees fans with the team that bested them in last year’s Fall Classic going up against their division rival, but someone’s gotta win it.