Paul Goldschmidt focusing on more than just hitting as he adjusts to new-look Yankees infield
Join Post Sports+ for exciting subscriber-only features, including real-time texting with Greg Joyce about the inside buzz on the Yankees from spring training TAMPA — Coming off the worst season of his major league career, Paul Goldschmidt is continuing some of the work to his approach this spring that helped him close out 2024 on something of a positive note.The 37-year-old can’t afford not to, especially after what was an especially rough first five months of the regular season at the plate.But the focus for Goldschmidt, who signed a one-year, $12.5 million deal with the Yankees this offseason, isn’t solely on his bat.It’s also at first base, where Goldschmidt is a four-time Gold Glove winner, most recently in 2021.His defensive metrics have slipped in recent years, although those numbers aren’t as reliable at first base as they are at other spots on the field.Still, Goldschmidt knows he has his work cut out for himself this spring as part of what is a revamped Yankee infield that will only carry over Anthony Volpe at the same position he was at a year ago.In addition to Goldschmidt at first, Jazz Chisholm Jr.has moved from third base to second in an effort to take advantage of his athleticism, and the team continues to look for a replacement for Chisholm at third, with Oswaldo Cabrera and Oswald Peraza the leading candidates and DJ LeMahieu on the shelf with an injured left calf.“I’m getting to know the infielders,” Goldschmidt said at Steinbrenner Field this week in advance of his fifth Grapefruit League game of the spring on Sunday, an 11-1 loss to Atlanta.
“I’m used to getting a new infielder every year and now I’m the new one, so I’ll have three or four different guys to learn.”He’s not anticipating many issues, especially from the middle of the diamond.“I’ve seen Jazz play third, so if he can play third, short and center, he can play second,’’ Goldschmidt said.“Seeing him up close, he’s gonna make some throws a...