Around the Empire: Yankees news - 11/14/20

NY Daily News | Deesha Thosar: Congratulations must go out to former Yankees assistant general manager Kim Ng, who made baseball history with the Marlins on Friday by becoming the first woman and Asian American to ever to be hired as GM of a big-league team. As The Athletic’s Marc Carig also noted, it’s a big deal. Ng previously worked for Yankees GM Brian Cashman between 1998-2001, the dynasty years of her now-boss, Derek Jeter. She’s showing off her ‘98 World Series ring in the tweeted picture below.

FanGraphs | Dan Szymborski: It’s never too early to get a jump on what’s to come in 2021. Szymborski’s annual ZiPS projections are out. There’s a lot to take from this piece (particularly on the pitching side), but one positive? ZiPS sees a return to 2019 form coming from Gleyber Torres. One negative: Gary Sanchez, not so much.

MLB Trade Rumors | Mark Polishuk: The Kiwoom Heroes will post star infielder Ha-Seong Kim shortly after Thanksgiving. Kim only just turned 25 and has excelled in the KBO for the last two seasons, batting .307/.393/.507 with 49 homers, 56 stolen bases, and a 142 wRC+ in 277 games, so good teams like the Yankees are sure to at least do their due diligence on him. Kim has mostly been a shortstop, but he played 55 games at third in 2020 and could likely be used at second, too. Ryan Pavich discussed him in the PSA mailbag yesterday. Both MLBTR and FanGraphs predicted that Kim would end up with a five-year contract.

Beyond the Box Score | Kenny Kelly: If it feels like Yankee Stadium is perfectly designed for DJ LeMahieu, you’re not the only who shares that sentiment. He has excelled at blasting baseballs to the opposite-field short porch, and nowhere is better suited for that power skill set than than the Bronx.