Ryan McMahon’s circumstances changed in an instant.
When the Colorado Rockies traded McMahon to the Yankees on Friday, it ended the nine-year MLB veteran’s tenure with the only organization he had ever played for.
But it also removed McMahon from a Rockies team in the midst of a historically bad season — and thrust the third baseman into the thick of a playoff race.
“It’s hard to figure out exactly how you’re feeling,” McMahon said Saturday at Yankee Stadium. “I’m a little bit more of a mellow guy, so I’m never gonna get too high, never gonna get too low. Just trying to take it in stride, but I’m really excited to be here.”
McMahon, 30, had time to process the life change on Friday during a three-and-a-half-hour Uber ride from Baltimore, where the Rockies are playing this weekend.
The car took him straight to Yankee Stadium, where he arrived at around 8:30 p.m. He left before the end of Friday’s game in order to settle into the city ahead of his team debut.
The Yankees added McMahon to the active roster on Saturday, and he was in the lineup, batting eighth and playing third base, for a matinee against the Philadelphia Phillies.
“This is every kid’s dream,” McMahon said. “When you’re 9, 10 years old, hitting Wiffle balls in the backyard, you’re picturing yourself in Game 7 of the World Series at Yankee Stadium.”
The Yankees hope McMahon can help them return to the World Series by stabilizing a third-base position that’s been among their biggest question marks.
After losing Oswaldo Cabrera to a fractured ankle and moving Jazz Chisholm Jr. back to second base, the Yankees received minimal production from Oswald Peraza and Jorbit Vivas, the latter of whom was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to make room on the roster for McMahon.
Advanced metrics grade McMahon among baseball’s best defensive third baseman, but he endured a down season on offense with Colorado, hitting .217 with a .717 OPS while leading the National League with 127 strikeouts.
McMahon, a 2024 All-Star, is a career .240 hitter, and he entered Saturday with 16 home runs, putting him on pace for his fifth consecutive season with at least 20 homers.
“I’m working through some stuff,” McMahon said. “Trying to make sure that I’m putting the ball in play when I need to put it in play. For me, it’s usually just ending the at-bat when it needs to be ended. Getting a good pitch to hit and making sure that I hit it.”
Throughout his career, McMahon posted superior statistics at Denver’s Coors Field — where the high altitude favors hitters – compared to on the road, but his left-handed swing figures to be a fit for Yankee Stadium’s right-field porch.
“I’m more excited just to be part of this lineup,” McMahon said. “From the other side, you look over at the Yankee lineup and it’s intimidating. There’s a lot of really good players, guys who can do a lot of really good things, so I’m happy to be a part of that, and we’ll see what [hitting at Yankee Stadium] brings.”
McMahon, who wore No. 24 with Colorado, is wearing No. 19 with the Yankees in a nod to his father’s high-school number and to one of his all-time favorite teammates, former Rockies outfielder Charlie Blackmon.
Blackmon’s professionalism made an impression, as did the work ethics of infielders Nolan Arenado and DJ LeMahieu, whom McMahon said he learned from as a young player.
McMahon spoke with Aaron Boone over the phone during Friday’s Uber ride, then met with the manager in person for the first time before Saturday’s game. McMahon arrived 22 years after the Yankees acquired Boone, then a third baseman, before the 2003 trade deadline and gave him No. 19, too.
“We caught up in my office for a few minutes,” Boone said. “Quick turnaround today, so just want to get him settled in and acclimated as best as possible. Looking forward to getting to know him and getting him on-boarded with us. Excited to have him.”
McMahon is under contract through 2027, but the trade did not surprise him based on intel he had received from his agent.
He’s happy he landed with the Yankees.
“I couldn’t pick a better spot,” McMahon said, “if I hand-picked it myself.”
Originally Published:
