The narrative for Aaron Boone’s New York Yankees in the postseason hasn’t been too generous to fans. Coming from a club that was on a steady pace for 100+ wins, an exit in the ALCS is demoralizing.

The Houston Astros have taken ownership of the Yanks in the postseason. The Yankees have been ousted four times in the past decade by Houston. Although the Astros failed to conform with MLB regulations in 2017 and 2018 they seem to have the edge over New York regardless.

Clearly, the Yankees are pressing the wrong buttons and a quick solution could be in the upcoming free-agent class. While general managers Brian Cashman’s strategy of constructing a team solely on the ability to hit home runs has its upside, timely hitting is a necessity. For a club that hit the most home runs in the regular season, timely hitting has not been a strong suit.

Here are three free-agent players who can help the New York Yankees obtain its first championship in nearly 15 years next season.

Josh Bell

Anthony Rizzo is on the brink of free agency with a player option worth $16 million for 2023. Rizzo’s departure means that the first base is vacant and would need reinforcements from the outside. That would be Josh Bell.

Bell completely abandoned the ship in the second half of the season, after the Nats shipped him to San Diego via the Soto package (.194/.317/.289). Although the 30-year-old was arguably the hottest hitter in baseball through the first half and ultimately proved himself in the NLCS with a six-hit series.

The switch-hitter is productive from both sides of the plate which integrates well with a heavy-righty lineup such as the Yankees. He has the tendency to spray the ball to every segment of the field regardless of his handedness (hitting the other way: .365/.359/.565). Defensively, Bell is a downgrade from Rizzo but his glove isn’t as versatile to platoon him elsewhere.