Around the Empire: Yankees news - 1/20/23

CBS Sports | R.J. Anderson: The long, strange, and often troubling Yankees career of Aroldis Chapman has formally come to an end, as the left-handed former flamethrower signed a one year contract worth $3.75 million with the Kansas City Royals (pending a physical, of course). The 13-year veteran is coming off the worst season of his career, during which he saw himself lose the closer job to breakout reliever Clay Holmes, miss time due to an infected tattoo, and finally, amidst rumors that the team contemplated designating him for assignment in September, decide not to show up to a mandatory workout prior to the postseason. It was an ignoble end for a Yankees career that, from the beginning, was marked more by lowlights than highlights, and whose initial acquisition cast a moral shadow over the organization.

MLB.com | Bryan Hoch: In lighter news, beat reporter Bryan Hoch breaks down new Yankees prospect Brando Mayea, whom the team signed as an international free agent out of Cuba when the international signing period opened up earlier this week. Described as a “mini Gary Sheffield,” the 17-year-old currently projects as an outfielder, although it remains to be seen whether or not he will be able to stick in center.

Yahoo! Sports | Alex Smith: Speaking of prospects, we’re fully in the midst of prospect ranking season, and today, we have another one for you. Baseball America released their top 100 prospects this week, and five members of the Yankees organization can be found on the list: Anthony Volpe (14), Oswald Peraza (62), Jasson Dominguez (67), Everson Pereira (78), and Austin Wells (94). These five should be familiar names to Yankees fans, particularly those who follow the farm, as they have widely been considered to be the Yankees’ best, although various ranking systems differ in the order that they should be listed in.

NJ.com | Randy Miller: Another week of the offseason gives us another Q&A with a Yankee prospect. This time, it’s Carson Coleman, a right-handed pitcher who broke out as a member of the Hudson Valley Renegades and Somerset Patriots this past season. While he answers many of the typical questions lower-ranking prospects are asked — including what it’s like playing alongside Volpe and Dominguez — Coleman also spent time discussing his charity work, as he devotes much time to raising awareness for ALS and Alzheimer’s research.

Sports Illustrated | Max Goodman: Although it seems like the Yankees are content to enter 2023 with Aaron Hicks and Oswaldo Cabrera in left field, the team has nonetheless continued to monitor the free agency of former top prospect Jurickson Profar. A switch-hitter who has played literally everywhere on the diamond, Profar would not be a flashy move, but it would raise the floor of the lineup.