New York Yankees Join Historic Company By Signing Former MVP Paul Goldschmidt

Since losing Juan Soto to the New York Mets, the New York Yankees have added Paul Goldschmidt and Cody Bellinger to a lineup that already included Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton.

Jun. 19, 2013; Phoenix, AZ, USA: Miami Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton (left) alongside Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Paul Goldschmidt at Chase Field. / Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

The New York Yankees have gone after big-name, proven talent so far this winter, and that trend continued when they reached an agreement with free agent first baseman Paul Goldschmidt on Saturday.

Goldschmidt, 37, won NL MVP with the St. Louis Cardinals in 2022, which is to say nothing of his three top-three finishes with the Arizona Diamondbacks throughout the 2010s. His arrival in the Bronx comes just a few days after the Yankees acquired 2019 NL MVP Cody Bellinger in a blockbuster trade with the Chicago Cubs.

The pair is joining a lineup that already featured two-time AL MVP Aaron Judge and 2017 NL MVP Giancarlo Stanton, setting New York up to make history in 2025.

The Yankees will be just the seventh team in MLB history to have four former MVPs appear for them in a single season.

The Los Angeles Dodgers have achieved the feat in 2024, 2022 and 2021, although starting pitcher Clayton Kershaw was one of the former MVP winners on all three squads. The 1996 Boston Red Sox had a similar dynamic, with Roger Clemens starring alongside Jose Canseco, Kevin Mitchell and Mo Vaughn.

Therefore, the 2025 Yankees are set to join the 1982 California Angels and 1978 Cincinnati Reds as the only teams ever to feature four position player MVPs. California had Reggie Jackson, Rod Carew, Fred Lynn and Don Baylor, while Cincinnati boasted George Foster, Pete Rose Joe Morgan and Johnny Bench.

Bellinger, who was part of the Dodgers' star-studded rosters in 2021 and 2022, will become the only player ever to be on multiple different teams with four MVPs.

Goldschmidt and Bellinger are effectively replacing Juan Soto and Anthony Rizzo, the former of whom inked a $765 million deal with the New York Mets and the latter of whom is still a free agent. The 26-year-old Soto was runner-up for NL MVP in 2021 and second runner-up for AL MVP in 2024, while the 35-year-old Rizzo placed fourth in NL MVP voting in both 2015 and 2016.

Both Goldschmidt and Bellinger are coming off down years, so it isn't as if the Yankees are getting four MVPs in their prime. Judge is really the only one currently operating at the height of his powers, even if the other three have still proven to be effective at this point in their respective careers.

Prior to the 2024 Dodgers, none of the other four-MVP teams had even reached a World Series, let alone won one.

Judge, Stanton, Goldschmidt and Bellinger combined for a 15.0 WAR in 2024, with Judge accounting for 10.8 of that. The four MVPs on the 2024 Dodgers were coming off a 2023 campaign in which they posted a 28.5 cumulative WAR.

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