Yankees Rumors: J.T. Realmuto Expected to Be Pursued in 2020 Free Agency

J.T. Realmuto will be one of the top free agents on the market this offseason, and the New York Yankees are "expected to make a play" for the talented catcher, according to Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports.

The Philadelphia Phillies will be interested in re-signing Realmuto, but there will also be competition among the National League East, with the Washington Nationals, New York Mets and Atlanta Braves also reportedly interested.

Salisbury added he also has an "attraction" to the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros, who are close to his home in Oklahoma.

The Yankees could use an upgrade behind the plate after a rough season from Gary Sanchez. The 27-year-old hit .147 with just a .618 OPS, adding 10 home runs. The two-time All-Star has been better at the plate in the past, twice hitting over 30 home runs in a season, but the inconsistency was a major issue in 2020.

Even if Sanchez improves at the plate, Realmuto would be an upgrade as a better overall hitter. He finished the year with a .266 average and .840 OPS and has a .278 career average. Throughout his career, he has been a reliable batter with a good eye who can hit home runs and also find the gaps, providing more offensively than Sanchez.

The two are also separated defensively, especially when it comes to pitch framing. Per Fangraphs, Sanchez has cost his team runs with his framing in four of the last five years. Realmuto has been a positive in each of the last four years and helped save eight runs over the full season 2019. Sanchez finished minus-6.8 in the same category.

"He's the best catcher in baseball," Byrce Harper said of Realmuto. "He's the best hitting catcher in baseball. Our guys love to throw to him if that's (Zack) Wheeler, if that's (Aaron) Nola, if that's anybody."

This type of two-way player will likely be costly on the open market, but the Yankees could benefit by adding someone of this caliber.