While the New York Yankees have indeed made attempts to sign hard-hitting third baseman Alex Bregman, this move will cost them a significant hit to their payroll and will only solve one problem.

In a lower-cost proposal, NJ.com beat writer Randy Miller suggested a trade that would solve several problems for the Yankees.

It’s no secret that the Yankees have been talking to the Cubs about first baseman/outfielder Cody Bellinger, but Miller proposed a deal in which the Yankees would get both Bellinger and Nico Hoerner.

That would fill the Yankees’ need at first and second base for Marcus Stroman and a prospect like pitcher Will Warren.

“Bellinger doesn’t come close to what he was in his 47-home run NL MVP season for the Dodgers in 2019, but he’ll still hit 25-30 home runs without hitting much while also hitting an excellent one Defense plays,” Miller wrote .

“Horns? He doesn’t hit for power, but he is a right-handed hitter who bats .260, steals 30 to 40 bases and plays second base to the max. He won a Gold Glove and is a day-to-day difference from Torres in the field.”

In this scenario, Miller explains that the Yankees can use Bellinger as a left fielder and sign first baseman Christian Walker or, less likely, Pete Alonso. Or they can use Bellinger first and sign Anthony Santander or Jurickson Profar.

Either way, Bellinger is a left-handed bat that the Yankees need and who they believe will fit well with their short frontcourt in right field at Yankee Stadium.

Bellinger isn’t the same hitter he was in 2019, no, but he’s an improvement over what the Yankees did at first base and left field last year. The 29-year-old is coming off a decent year, hitting .266/.325/.426 with 18 home runs.

Hoerner is a solid .273 hitter, but more importantly, he improves defense in the middle. According to Baseball Savant, he is considered one of the best players in the majors.

That’s especially important after the Yankees signed Max Fried, a groundball pitcher who relies on defense. Plus, the Yankees’ poor defense really embarrassed them in the World Series.

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