New York Yankees v Texas Rangers / Sam Hodde/GettyImages

That’s right! This list is simply the name “Alex Verdugo” written out three times, followed by block paragraphs of keyboard mashing as if I’ve been driven insane locked up in “The Shining” hotel.

Truth be told, the Yankees’ pending free agents this offseason don’t fall neatly into the “been fine, still should leave” bucket. One, Juan Soto, has been exceptional, and must be retained at all costs. The others have either run their course by regressing only in recent years, or flamed out spectacularly.

You can make the argument that Yankees fans won’t spend much time missing any of these pending free agents, as long as Soto comes home to roost permanently in right field (and at, uh, DH sometimes, and in increasing amounts as he ages). Still, the Yankees are poised to willingly let some previous contributors walk this offseason, and they deserve a hat tip on their way out. “Yeah, we’re done here, but move quickly before I change my mind,” that kind of thing.

Two options with slight caveats: Anthony Rizzo has a likely-to-be-voided club option, but it feels likelier than ever that the Yankees will find some way for him to “retire” in the Bronx. Jonathan Loaisiga, an unrestricted free agent after this season, was certainly “good” when he was an active Yankee, but that hasn’t been the case in quite some time.

3 Yankees free agents who don’t need to return

Gleyber Torres

Somewhat silently, the exploits of Leadoff Gleyber have pushed Torres’ OPS+ to 97, edging closer to league average daily. He’s fulfilled his destiny in recent weeks: a solid-not-great player who can carry a team offensively for a few weeks at a time, but should never be a lineup’s third-best hitter by design.

Unfortunately, based on his 2024 trajectory, there’s still a good chance Yankee fans end up remembering him for a playoff-altering defensive gaffe under hot spotlights. Just last weekend, his first inning error led to Gerrit Cole’s only runs allowed on Sunday as the Yankees silently slunk home with a 2-1 defeat, their only loss at Wrigley. His misjudged pop-up on Monday led to runs as well.

His 38 home runs with the juiced ball in 2019 were revelatory, and he used to step things up in October during his first few years in pinstripes from 2018-2020. Unfortunately, the progression stopped in 2021, and this may surprise you, but his 2023 “totally viable” offensive season netted a 118 OPS+, only 10 points below his 2019 heights of 128. Turns out, he was always a solid bat-first player, but under the magnifying glass as his free agency has approached, things have gotten worse. He remains … not a star.

Tommy Kahnle

Tommy Kahnle hasn’t quite been the “97-at-your-head-or-maybe-91-below-the-knees” wild man he once was during his second stint in the Bronx, but while his 2023 season tailed off personally (along with the rest of his teammates) in August, he’s emerged as a potential playoff closer option this year by spamming the changeup. Recent progress led to potentially his most dominant outing of the year at just the right time on Friday at Wrigley Field. And he’s been great ever since the Yankees made the Clay Holmes switch.

Next season, Kahnle will turn 36 midway through August, but his performance this season has probably merited another multi-year contract. Despite so much uncertainty in the bullpen, this isn’t the place the Yankees should be splurging with a looming Soto contract currently stapled to their windshield, blocking out the rest of the view.

Clay Holmes

I know, I know. Here we are, redefining “good,” as the Yankees seem to do every fall. But Holmes has been a valuable reliever for the Yankees since his 2021 arrival, and didn’t appear so woefully miscast as a closer until this particular season, when everything broke down all at once, from his infield defense to his way-too-hittable sinker. Holmes was a mess from the end of May through early September this season, and getting “creative” with the closer role towards the end of his walk year was the correct move. Letting him depart this offseason will be correct, too.

Still, failing to acknowledge Holmes’ success and multiple All-Star appearances (one of them earned in 2022) would’ve felt like a missed opportunity. He needs to move on, and he will, but he was effective for quite a while in pinstripes — and, to be honest, might be again as a slider-reliant mid-innings reliever this September and October.