Clint Frazier knows firsthand what it looks like when things don’t pan out with the Yankees — and now he’s urging the team to stop hoping for best-case scenarios.
The former Yankees outfielder, who spent his first five MLB seasons in the Bronx, tore into the team for consistently relying on rebound campaigns from struggling players instead of seeking tangible upgrades.
“Stop relying on the bounceback player,” Frazier said during his podcast, “Life After The Show,” on Wednesday.
“If you’re hoping that players are going to bounce back versus being proactive and going out and spending on the players who might be able to take the positions of the guys you hope bounce back, I think you can move in a better direction,” he added.
Frazier’s comments come on the heels of a quiet Winter Meetings for the Yankees who have yet to execute a signing or trade — while AL East rival Orioles signed slugger Pete Alonso and the Blue Jays acquired Dylan Cease.
“I don’t know the formula the Yankees are navigating this winter; they keep saying we’ll see how the winter unfolds,” Frazier said. “The way it’s unfolding is that other teams are making moves.
“Now, I know they got Ryan Yarbrough, they got Tim Hill, they got Trent Grisham. But can you really say that the Yankees team looks that different? It feels like to me they’re holding on a lot to what 2025 was and hoping 2026 goes this way.”
The 31-year-old last suited up in the majors with the White Sox in 2023 — but has been a vocal critic of the Yankees since the team cut him after the 2021 season.
The former top prospect bashed the Yankees in June for having “too many rocket scientists” influencing decisions, while later saying the organization would not win the 2025 World Series because “they do dumbass s–t.”
His comments even drew the ire of former teammate and new Hall of Famer CC Sabathia.
Frazier’s latest criticism focused on the team entering recent seasons with players coming off down years, while not committing money to more established players.
“Back in the day, all I heard when I was with the Yankees, and we were struggling, was that if George [Steinbrenner] was still around, things would be different,” Frazier said.
“The Yankees need to spend like the Yankees again.”
Frazier came to the Yankees as the prized return in the 2016 Andrew Miller trade, but despite his Cashman-praised “legendary” bat speed and flashes of success, injuries and inconsistency eventually led to his release.
In line with his experience, the former Gold Glove finalist pointed to a pair of current Yankees as examples of players the team should move on from rather than hoping for a rebound.
“There is kind of a surplus sample size with some of these individuals they can move on from,” Frazier said. “There are other fish out there that you can move, go get and pounce on and make the Yankees better.
“We know who those individuals are — Anthony Volpe, Austin Wells, guys like that.”
Volpe is coming off a disappointing 2025 and will miss the start of next season after undergoing shoulder surgery. Wells set a career-high in home runs (21) but otherwise saw most of his offensive numbers plummet.
Frazier name-dropped Nationals shortstop CJ Abrams and left-handed ace MacKenzie Gore, both of whom have been floated in trade talks, as ideal targets for the Yankees — while relocating their struggling youngsters.
“You can offload those guys to go and get some of these guys,” Frazier added. “You can package a few of these guys you’re hoping bounceback to the Nationals.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
