The Yankees made a move Tuesday they had to make.

After weeks of questions, they finally shifted Jazz Chisholm Jr. from third base to second base. And, in doing so, relegated DJ LeMahieu to the bench and, perhaps, signaled the beginning of the end of the proud veteran’s career with the Yankees.

That conclusion comes based on manager Aaron Boone’s surprisingly blunt answer to a question about who now plays third base for the Yankees on a daily basis — at least until the July 31 trade deadline — with Chisholm heading back to his more natural infield position of second.

“I think physically it’s a challenge for him right now,” Boone said Tuesday of playing LeMahieu at third. “So, no, right now no plans of doing that, but we’ll see.”

Oswald Peraza started at third Tuesday night in a 10-3 victory over the Mariners and, though Boone didn’t commit to him as the everyday third baseman, process of elimination with the big-league roster, as currently constructed, makes him that for now.

LeMahieu, meanwhile, is hitting .266 with a .338 on-base percentage. He’s come on of late, hitting .304 with a .347 on-base percentage in his previous 16 games.

But this move was made because LeMahieu, a three-time Gold Glove winner at second base has been a liability in the field since coming off the injured list on May 13.

“He just can’t move anymore,” said one rival AL scout who has seen the Yankees multiple times over the last two months. “I love DJ, always have. Everyone does. Plays the right way. But he just looks cooked (in the field). And it’s not like you can hide him at third.”

Boone, appropriately, didn’t portray LeMahieu in such harsh terms, instead focusing on what Chisholm brings to second.

“I want to…take advantage of his athleticism,” Boone said. “I think just letting his athleticism go in the middle of the diamond hopefully is something that serves him, and us, well.”

Boone did not delve too deeply into his conversation with LeMahieu but indicated that, unsurprisingly, it was not an easy one. There is no one more respected in the Yankees’ clubhouse than the soft-spoken LeMahieu, a two-time batting champion who is revered by veterans and young players alike for how he goes about his daily work.

“Not great necessarily,” Boone said of how LeMahieu took the news. “But that’s kind of the situation we’re in right now.”

The Yankees entered the spring intending for LeMahieu to be their primary third baseman, that quickly going by the wayside when the infielder suffered a left calf strain in his first Grapefruit League game.

But LeMahieu getting hurt didn’t catch anyone in the organization by surprise, the reason the Yankees as far back as December’s winter meetings were exploring the third base market. That exploration, despite some recent reports last week saying the Yankees were in the early stages of looking at third base options, in reality had never stopped as it continued into, and throughout, the spring, straight into the regular season.

It now is a red-alert need — to go along with starting pitcher depth and at least one stud bullpen arm — because the internal options aren’t palatable. Peraza, a natural shortstop, is a wizard with his glove, whether playing at third, short or second. He made several standout plays Tuesday, including a terrific stop, and ensuing throw, in the hole on Ben Williamson’s ground shot in the seventh.

But the 25-year-old, never the same at the plate since getting steamrolled by Anthony Volpe in the starting shortstop competition from spring training 2023, entered Tuesday hitting .154 with a .225 OBP. He did drive in the Yankees’ first run Tuesday in the fifth when Seattle second baseman Cole Young mishandled his slow chopper.

“It has been a struggle offensively. Hopefully, he takes advantage of some opportunities and can get it rolling a little bit,” Boone said of Peraza, not sounding especially hopeful.

The Yankees signed veteran infielders Jeimer Candelario and Nicky Lopez to minor-league deals last week and also have the slick-fielding Andrew Velazquez in their system. But that trio are merely organizational depth — not long-term answers and certainly not difference-makers come late September or October.

As for Chisholm, he’s back at the infield position he feels most comfortable and makes the Yankees far stronger up the middle than they were with LeMahieu at second. He made a nice stop, ranging to his left, on a sharp grounder hit by pinch-hitter Dylan Moore in the top of the seventh and added an RBI double in the bottom half.

“Elite defender. Elite slugging. Fast. Great defense,” Chisholm, who can always be counted on for a this-is-how-I-really-feel answer, said with a smile of his attributes as a second baseman. “I don’t know what else to tell you. Sounds like a complete player to me.”

The Yankees, without question, improved their lot Tuesday at second base.

Third base? It's a bigger question than ever.