There are no absolutes. A team can win with all different types and emphases. This is not one size fits all.

But as a general rule, in my time around the Yankees, they have seemed to be constructed best when a lefty hitter and strong defender plays first base: Don Mattingly, Tino Martinez, John Olerud, Mark Teixeira and Anthony Rizzo. Olerud and Rizzo did not play there nearly as much as the others, coincidentally appearing in 47 games each at first base for the Yankees.

First base is traditionally one of the easiest places to find a lefty hitter, and the Yankees have to be committed to more lineup diversity than the past few years. I also believe first-base defense is underappreciated. An error saver there helps the psyche and bottom line of a whole infield.

It is why the Yankees have to separate from Luke Voit, a player with a righty bat, well-below-average defense and a big body that breaks often. He was a fine under-the-radar acquisition — though it should be noted that Giovanny Gallegos, who was traded along with Chasen Shreve to acquire Voit in July 2018, has become a consistently above-average reliever for the Cardinals with a 2.74 ERA and 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings in 157 appearances. But going any further when Voit accentuates many of the Yankees’ problems would be a mistake.