Four Yankees officially hit MLB free agency Wednesday.

INF DJ LeMahieu and C Erik Kratz made for the two position players while a pair of pitchers -- left-hander James Paxton and right-hander Masahiro Tanaka -- also were declared free agents.

The Yankees quartet was among a total of 147 MLB players to do so.

Chief among the contingent of Yankees is LeMahieu, who is a top offseason priority for GM Brian Cashman after a career-best two-year run with the franchise.

LeMahieu, whom Cashman signed in January of 2019 to a two-year contract for $24 million after he played his first eight MLB seasons on the Chicago Cubs (2011) and Colorado Rockies (2012-18), did not disappoint.

In addition to playing second base, first base and third base, LeMahieu's bat carried the Yankees at times.

LeMahieu was an All-Star selection, the third honor of his career, in 2019. Through 145 regular season games, he slashed .327/.375/.518 with 26 home runs -- 11 more than his previous personal-best 15 from 2018 -- and 102 RBI, a second career-high mark that smashed the previous 66 in 2016.

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