Jazz Chisholm Jr., infielder for the New York Yankees, has set high goals for the upcoming baseball season. Speaking at Spring Training in Tampa, Chisholm said he is aiming not just for a 40-40 season—40 home runs and 40 stolen bases—but believes he could reach the rare milestone of 50 home runs and 50 stolen bases.
“I just can’t help but get that gut feeling — it’s going to be an amazing year,” Chisholm said on Thursday. “Especially with [Aaron] Judge pushing me ever since I’ve gotten here, I feel like I’ve matured a lot in the game, just from watching him and his at-bats every day, watching the way he goes about it.
“That’s how I’m trying to go about it every day, and I feel like I have been this offseason. So that’s why I feel like my year is going to be so magical, because I’m following that guy.”
Chisholm developed his own statistic last year by combining home runs and stolen bases (HR+SB), using it as a personal challenge against teammate Aaron Judge. Judge finished slightly ahead with 65 HR+SB compared to Chisholm’s 62.
“He’s just a complete athlete,” Judge said. “He’s a guy that can dictate a game with one swing or even one play on defense.”
Despite finishing second to Judge—a three-time American League MVP—Chisholm achieved membership in the Yankees’ 30-30 club by recording 31 home runs and 31 stolen bases last season. Only Bobby Bonds (1975) and Alfonso Soriano (2002, ’03) had previously accomplished this for the team.
Chisholm attributed missing out on higher numbers last year to injuries. He plans to focus on reducing strikeouts and increasing walks this season. Participation with Great Britain in the World Baseball Classic may also help him improve his discipline at the plate.
“I worked hard this offseason,” he said. “I did what I had to do. I was in the gym a little bit earlier than I’m normally in there. And with the ABS system coming — I think since I hit home runs, people think I’m 6-foot-3 in the box. I stand kind of straight up. So that’s going to help a lot for me.”
Off the field, Chisholm became engaged during a trip to Finland over Christmas and largely ignored trade rumors throughout winter, focusing instead on preparations for his final arbitration-eligible season before free agency.
“Every year, I just want to win MVP,” he said. “It’s all the same. The money, the contracts, none of that really means anything if I don’t win MVP. In my head, I can make as much money as I want. But if I don’t have the MVP, I’m not going to be satisfied.”
Although there have been no contract extension talks yet with New York, Chisholm expressed interest in staying long-term.
“The atmosphere in New York, the way the fans are super passionate day in and day out — who doesn’t want to be in front of that for the rest of their career?” he said. “You walk down the street and a random guy or girl can tell you your stats. The amount of love for baseball in the city just equals how much I love baseball.”
Yankees manager Aaron Boone commented on Chisholm’s outlook: “He’s incredibly confident, and for good reason,” Boone said. “The bottom line is, if he goes out there and does his thing — and hopefully keeps even improving in this game — he’s going to put himself in a really good position come the end of the season.”
Boone added: “We’ll be in a good spot if he does,” Boone said. “It’s hard to put a ceiling on him. He went 30-30 last year and missed a month, and didn’t run for two months. So he’s capable of some special things between the lines.”
