Jazz Chisholm Jr. is still learning third base and New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone is preaching patience.
The Yankees’ trade deadline acquisition made another error on Tuesday night in a 4-1 loss to the Washington Nationals in DC. It was a rough night for New York all around. The Yankees didn’t scratch a run across until the 8th inning, and that came on a double play from Aaron Judge. Defensively, they made four errors, led by Chisholm’s in the first inning.
“Still learning, like I said from jump. On balance, it’s been really good to elite,” Boone told reporters after the game. “These reps will be really valuable for him, and these plays will be really good learning things for him moving forward.”
Chisholm’s miscue gives him six errors in 18 games at third base for the Yankees. It came on a ground ball from lefty batter James Wood. Chisholm fielded the ball cleanly, but his poor throw pulled first baseman DJ LeMahieu off the bag, allowing Wood to reach. The official scorer initially ruled it a hit before changing the call.
Those are the only 18 games he’s played at third in his career, coming over from the Miami Marlins where he was a centerfielder and second baseman.
Putting Chisholm at third has allowed the Yankees to keep playing Anthony Volpe at shortstop and Gleyber Torres at second. Neither has lit the world on fire with their bat, but both have hit better recently. Torres, who was a candidate to be traded at the deadline, is hitting .273 since the All-Star break while Volpe is hitting .263 and showing signs of improvement from a tough rookie year.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. has been the spark that the Yankees’ offense needed
For much of the season, the Yankees’ offense was Judge, Juan Soto, and a whole lot of nothing, particularly with Giancarlo Stanton missing a month due to injury. While Torres and Volpe have stepped up and Austin Wells has come out of nowhere to be an excellent hitting catcher, Chisholm has been just as important.
It’s more than just the raw offensive numbers, which are impressive enough and make his defense much more tolerable. He has socked eight home runs in 18 games with the Yankees. In that time, he has hit for a .293 average with five stolen bases and a .982 OPS.
Chisholm has also given New York an injection of energy, quickly becoming a fan favorite and adding some more youth to a clubhouse that seemed stuck in a midseason rut. The Yankees have climbed back into first place in the American League East and, despite their loss Tuesday, lead the Baltimore Orioles by 1.5 games.
