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Yankees decline 2025 option on first baseman Anthony Rizzo after World Series loss

By Kari Anderson, Yahoo Sports

New York Yankees' Anthony Rizzo walks back to the dugout after striking out to end the eighth inning in Game 5 of the baseball World Series, Wednesday, Oct. 30, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez) (Godofredo A. Vásquez/AP)

By Kari Anderson, Yahoo Sports

Fresh off a World Series loss, the New York Yankees is starting to make offseason moves. The team announced Saturday that it has declined the 2025 option of first baseman Anthony Rizzo.

The 35-year-old infielder signed a two-year, $34 million contract with the Yankees in 2022, with a $17 million option for 2025 or $6 million buyout included in that deal. By declining the option, Rizzo will now become a free agent.

Rizzo was involved in the fifth-inning gaffe that led the Yankees to blow a five-run lead in Game 5. A miscommunication between Rizzo and pitcher Gerrit Cole let Tommy Edman run in for a run, marking the third straight error of that inning.

Rizzo missed the AL Divisional Series against the Kansas City Royals after fracturing two fingers during the second to last game of the season. He returned to the lineup for the AL Championship Series, recording eight hits across the postseason, and eight strikeouts.

Over the season as a whole, he batted .228 with eight home runs and 35 RBIs in 92 games.

Rizzo's past two seasons have been hampered by injuries: The first baseman missed 62 games after fracturing his right forearm following a collision with a pitcher, and missed the final few months of the 2023 season with complications from a concussion.

Releasing Rizzo is the start of what is likely to be a busy offseason for the Yankees following the disappointment at the World Series. The team already exercised an option for reliever Luke Weaver on Friday, but have some other key players still up in the air. The Yankees still have to decide whether to exercise pitcher Lou Trivino's option, while Cole has the choice to opt out of his megadeal with New York.

Outfielder Juan Soto, who will be a free agent this offseason, has said that he is "open to listen to every single team" who will be giving him an offer, meaning that the Yankees will have to court him in order to get him to stay. Other than Soto, some key free agents include Gleyber Torres and Alex Verdugo.

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