On Monday night, the Yankees were dealt a brutal blow on top of their embarrassing 12-2 loss to the lowly White Sox. One of their scant runs that day came when Jazz Chisholm Jr. hustled to score all the way from second base on a grounder that barely left the infield. It was an exciting play in a close game at the time, but it came at a cost. Yesterday, the Yankees revealed that Chisholm had suffered a UCL injury of as-of-yet unknown severity, and that he would need to go on the IL. Season-ending elbow surgery is a possibility.

It unquestionably stinks that the Trade Deadline acquisition with 7 homers in 14 games has to vanish from the lineup. But the show goes on, and the logical next step focused on who would come up from the minors to take Chisholm’s place. According to Daniel Álvarez-Montes of El Extrabase, it will be a familiar face: infielder Oswald Peraza.

 

Peraza has gone through a curious saga over the past couple years. Prior to the 2022 and 2023 campaigns, he was considered an easy Top 100 Prospect by all three of Baseball America, Baseball Prospectus, and MLB Pipeline. Calls for the slick-fielding shortstop to replace incumbent Isiah Kiner-Falefa were rampant throughout the ‘22 season, and when he came up in September, he was a breath of fresh air, batting .306/.404/.429 in 18 games (57 PA). With confidence waning on IKF, the 22-year-old even started a couple playoff games.

In spring training 2023, however, Peraza was passed on the depth chart by the fast-rising Anthony Volpe, who established himself as the starting shortstop. It didn’t help that Peraza’s performance at the big-league level slumped whenever he was given an opportunity due to Josh Donaldson and Oswaldo Cabrera’s struggles. He had the defensive versatility to capably cover third base, but he hit just .191/.267/.272 in 52 games (191 PA).

So Peraza reported back to Scranton for 2024, and he also had to battle a right shoulder strain that kept him from beginning his Triple-A season until May 19th. It took him quite awhile to get back into form even after returning to the Electric City though, as Peraza batted a paltry .210/.325/.251 with a .576 OPS in 44 games through the end of the first half. Thankfully, that’s not the end of Peraza’s story as a Yankee.

Peraza has been a new man since the All-Star break. In 79 plate appearances, he’s torched the ball to the tune of a .316/.407/.658 clip, notching six doubles, seven homers, and eight stolen bases across 21 games.

Is it just a hot streak? That could be the case, but with Chisholm out, the opportunity was prime for the Yankees to give Peraza another chance. Caleb Durbin and Jorbit Vivas are nice prospects on their own, but Peraza’s high defensive acumen is enough on its own to demand a look.

There is a question of how much Peraza will play, though. Manager Aaron Boone had previously hinted at a timeshare of some form at the hot corner between Cabrera and DJ LeMahieu. Jon Berti is also nearing a rehab assignment and eyeing a September return. It’s conceivable that Peraza is just around to provide backup. How much he plays will honestly be an indication of how much the Yankees actually think of him, hot streak notwithstanding. If he’s still mostly on the bench in favor of Cabrera and LeMahieu, then his days with the organization might be numbered after 2024. If they trust him with semi-regular time, though, perhaps there could be a happy ending for Peraza in pinstripes after all.