New York Yankees center fielder Trent Grisham, fresh off accepting a $22.025 million qualifying offer following his 2025 breakout, made a spectacular full-extension dive to rob Philadelphia Phillies' Bryson Stott in a 5-3 spring training victory at BayCare Ballpark.
CLEARWATER, Fla. -- Positioned slightly incorrectly in the second inning Sunday, Trent Grisham sprinted to the right-center gap and dove fully extended to snag Bryson Stott's line drive, preventing extra bases in the Yankees' 5-3 win over the Phillies at BayCare Ballpark.
"It’s good to get a diving catch out of the way early," Grisham said.
As detailed in prior coverage of his qualifying offer acceptance, the two-time Gold Glove center fielder (2020, 2022) posted elite defense from 2019-2024 (fourth in MLB CF with 16 OAA) but regressed to negative marks in 2025 (-3 fielding run value, -2 OAA) amid a hamstring injury—despite career-best offense.
Grisham took the dip personally in the offseason: "I knew I was down toward the bottom of the list... I wanted to get better. It was more mentally putting a chip back on my shoulder."
The injury hampered his jumps, including a June exit in Toronto after catching a cleat on the turf; the Yankees briefly recalled Bryan De La Cruz from Triple-A but returned him at Grisham's insistence. "I felt good enough... It was about wanting to be out there," he said.
Manager Aaron Boone blamed metrics on the injury: "A handful of plays that don’t get made in the gap... I expect him to be really good out there."
Now healthy, Grisham's catch signals a return to form. GM Brian Cashman called the qualifying offer a bargain, ranking him third among free-agent outfielders behind Kyle Tucker's four-year, $240 million Dodgers deal and Cody Bellinger's five-year, $162.5 million Yankees pact. Grisham prioritized winning in accepting: "That weighed most into the decision."
