Anthony Rizzo is officially a free agent.
The first baseman may have played his last game in pinstripes as the Yankees declined his $17 million option sending him to the open market and triggering a $6 million buyout, the team announced on Saturday.
The 35-year-old knew the World Series could be the last time he called Yankee Stadium home.
“Yeah, obviously there’s a [team] option,” said Rizzo before Game 4 of the World Series. “I love playing here. I love being a Yankee. I love what comes with it. I love the standard that has been set here from all the generations, the great Yankees in the past. Yeah, this could very well be. I’m a realist. I’m not naive to it.”
The veteran’s 2024 season was riddled with injuries including a broken arm on June 16 that held him out until September. Then he was hit by a pitch breaking two of his fingers in the second to last game of the regular season against the Pittsburgh Pirates. After sitting out the division series against the Royals, he played the rest of the postseason with the injury and performed well, slashing .267/.421/.300 in 10 games.
Rizzo confirmed after their season-ending Game 5 loss that he is not looking at retirement.
“Yeah, for sure, [I still want to play],” said Rizzo. “I feel like I have a lot left to offer this game in a lot of different ways. I don’t want to take this [uniform] off.”
The possibility remains that the 2016 World Series Champion returns to the Yankees on a cheaper deal. Rizzo has been deemed a leader in their clubhouse and a valuable veteran presence. He is also famously close with Yankee captain Aaron Judge, whose voice holds tremendous value in the organization.
Should the Yankees decide to move on from Rizzo, there are intriguing options in free agency at first base. The Diamondbacks’ Christian Walker and Pete Alonso of the Mets are available on the open market as well as veteran Paul Goldschmidt — whose best baseball may be behind him.
There’s also an in-house option in Ben Rice who impressed at times filling in for Rizzo during his arm injury.
Rizzo was acquired by the Yankees in a deal with the Cubs at the 2021 trade deadline. In four seasons with the Bombers, he slashed .234/.326/.409.
