As New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman focused all his efforts on signing Gerrit Cole to a massive nine-year, $324 million deal, he let a few quality backups escape in free agency. One of those players is Austine Romine, who was a serviceable replacement for Gary Sanchez last season when he spent time on the injured list with a groin injury.
Romine wasn’t only a reliable defensive catcher, but he hit adequately too, posting a .281 batting average with eight homers over 228 at-bats. Letting him walk was more Romine’s choice than the Yankees’, as he was in search of a starting job, an offer Cashman didn’t have available with Gary Sanchez healthy.