Yankees' Jazz Chisholm Jr. gets very underwhelming $20M contract projection

May 26, 2026; Kansas City, Missouri, USA; New York Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. (13) reacts after hitting a solo home run in the eighth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter Aiken-Imagn Images

Coming into the 2026 MLB season, Jazz Chisholm Jr. made some very bold predictions about his 2026 season and the potential for a massive new contract.

Unfortunately for him and the New York Yankees, Chisholm has had a very underwhelming season compared to his All-Star potential. It's come at a bad time, as now he's going to hit free agency, more likely than not coming off a rough season.

The Athletic's Tim Britton projected what Chisholm's new contract could look like after such an underwhelming year, and fittingly it's a very underwhelming projection of around $20 million per-year on a shorter-term contract.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. gets underwhelming $20M contract projection

"I would expect teams would be interested in multi-year deals for Chisholm, but probably in the four-year range (and maybe between $20 million and $25 million per year)," Britton writes.

Chisholm being projected to land a $20 million-or-so AAV contract this offseason wouldn't be a terrible deal compared to others around MLB, but it would be underwhelming for the Yankees' infielder.

But Britton's projection for Chisholm comes with an unfortunate twist for the Yankees' second baseman: "This entire paragraph, I should acknowledge, does require Chisholm to break out of this slump sometime between now and the end of the Yankees' season."

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In 116 games this season, Chisholm has posted just 0.7 bWAR with 17 homers and a .214 batting average and .677 OPS. It's a significant drop-off from his .813 OPS last season and is the first time in a full season he's been below a .728 OPS.

This was a bad year for his first sign of regression, if his 2026 production could be called that. Chisholm needs to bounce back down the stretch; otherwise, this $20 million per-year projection might be a bit too high from Britton.

This is an unfortunate reality for Chisholm and the Yankees, as his production is sorely missed in the lineup, and it comes at the worst time for Chisholm's bank account as well.

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