Yankees fans elated by Isiah Kiner-Falefa's move to second base in Spring Training: "Very good sign. Getting him ready to be our bench utility guy"

If there is one player who has been in the crosshairs of New York Yankees fans this spring, it's been shortstop Isiah Kiner-Falefa. Fans have resoundingly rebuked his presence in several positions.

Earlier in the year, fans took to Twitter to excoriate Yankees manager Aaron Boone for preferring Falefa at shortstop to 24-year-old Venezuelan Oswald Peraza. Peraza appeared in 18 games last September for the Yankees, hitting .306/.404/.429 over that brief period.

Rage among New York Yankees fans was only fanned when Boone announced that he would be looking to play Kiner-Falefa in the outfield. Understandably, fans were not too enthusiastic about upsetting the outfield balance of Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge and Harrison Bader, who accounted for nearly half of the New York Yankees' home runs last season.

As the pre-season shapes up, the second base position is being contested between 2019 first overall pick Anthony Volpe and Venezuelan veteran Gleyber Torres. Torres had his best offensive season in years last year, while Volpe is seen as the future of the organization.

​

Talkin' Yanks

@TalkinYanks

Yanks will give us a look at IKF at second today

376

12

Yanks will give us a look at IKF at second today https://t.co/DJLgWNHW3A

"Yanks will give us a look at IKF at second today" - Talkin' Yanks

Ahead of the Yankees' March 10 game against the Detroit Tigers, Aaron Boone slotted Kiner-Falefa into the second base position. Fans took it as a sign that Isiah Kiner-Falefa will not play a fixed role, but rather rotate as a utility man this year. This concept is evidently very attractive to fans.

​

Empire State Sports

@ess_empire

@TalkinYanks It’ll be interesting to see what that produces

@TalkinYanks It’ll be interesting to see what that produces

Jon Barstow

@jbarstow23

@bushwicknycfc @Yankees @TalkinYanks I believe it is. Very good sign. Getting him ready to be our bench utility guy

2

@bushwicknycfc @Yankees @TalkinYanks I believe it is. Very good sign. Getting him ready to be our bench utility guy

Isiah Kiner-Falefa came to the New York Yankees along with third baseman Josh Donaldson from the Minnesota Twins in a trade earlier last year. Since both he and Donaldson had mediocre years in 2022, they have both felt the heat from fans before the 2023 season has even started.

​

YanksReport

@yanks_report

@Yankees IKF AT A DIFFERENT POSITION FINALLY

5

@Yankees IKF AT A DIFFERENT POSITION FINALLY

José A. De León

@JDeLeonNYY

@TalkinYanks Let’s go IKF not at SS…that’s a win

1

@TalkinYanks Let’s go IKF not at SS…that’s a win

Benny

@bennybaseball_

@TalkinYanks Arguably his best look

@TalkinYanks Arguably his best look

Aaron Boone played Isiah Kiner-Falefa in 142 games last year, with him appearing at shortstop in the vast majority of them. The 27-year-old hit .261/.314/.327 with four home runs and 48 RBIs, representing a small contraction in his offensive output from his 2021 campaign with the Texas Rangers.

​

Karen Veenstra

@Karen_Veenstra

@TalkinYanks If they could give us a look of him in a Dodgers uniform that’d be better.

39

@TalkinYanks If they could give us a look of him in a Dodgers uniform that’d be better.

Joey

@JoeythebigboSs

@TalkinYanks Why is he still on the team lol is my question.

2

@TalkinYanks Why is he still on the team lol is my question.

Despite his relative popularity at second base, some New York Yankees fans would still rather see him off the team altogether.

Lots of questions for Isiah Kiner-Falefa and the New York Yankees lineup as Opening Day 2023 looms large

Although having too much talent is never a real problem, the Yankees will have to find a way to use their latent skills in the best possible way. Although Volpe and Peraza are still questionable for Opening Day, it appears as though Isiah Kiner-Falefa will not be the team's only shortstop this year. For most Yankees fans, that's a good thing.

​

​