Upgrading the bullpen ahead of the trade deadline is always on the Yankees’ to-do list.
They executed that plan last summer with Mark Leiter Jr. of the Cubs and Enyel De Los Santos of the Padres. De Los Santos lasted only five games with the Yankees and Leiter didn’t pitch well, but he’s shown how valuable he can be so far this year.
Three years ago, the Yankees imported both Lou Trivino (part of the ill-fated Frankie Montas trade with the Athletics) and Scott Effross, also from the Cubs.
This season, expect the Yankees to prioritize relievers leading up to the July 31 deadline once again. An infielder, bench bat and starting pitcher could also be on their wish list.
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With closer Luke Weaver on the injured list for the next few weeks, however, it’s clear that the Yankees would benefit from adding upgrades to their bullpen sooner than later. That logic applies with a short-term lens and an outlook focused solely on October.
While the Yankees’ offense has been dynamic this year and their starting rotation — up until a few speed bumps in the last week or so — has been magnificent, their bullpen has been in the middle of the pack. As of Monday, the Yankees rank 15th in reliever ERA (3.83). Their strikeout numbers are elite — the Yankees rank in the top five with a 25.6 reliever strikeout rate — but their 9.9 bullpen walk rate is much too high.
That ERA is inflated by the shaky start from Devin Williams back in April. He’s settled in nicely and is poised to give the Yankees coverage in the ninth inning while Weaver is out. Recently, more concerns have presented themselves, though. Ian Hamilton’s production is nothing like what it was over his first two years with the Yankees. Jonathan Loáisiga has been burned by the home run ball, and a wave of hard contact, here in June as well.
Since Weaver is out of the picture for a while and Williams is handling closer duties, the Yankees are limited to an exclusive group of set-up options right now. Leiter, Fernando Cruz, Loáisiga and Tim Hill have been used quite a bit in high-leverage spots by manager Aaron Boone.
Give Yerry De Los Santos credit. He’s pitched well in spurts with the big-league club and could be a legit option for them this summer if he keeps this up. Unless Hamilton turns a corner, though, Boone needs more choices for close ballgames. Otherwise, and this connects back to October, those important late-inning arms will be more susceptible to burning out down the stretch because of the volume of their usage.
The Yankees — as all teams do — are constantly monitoring the open market, always on the hunt to pounce on a player who gets dumped by another club. Turning another team’s scraps into success stories in pinstripes has been a specialty of sorts for the Yankees’ pitching department in recent years.
It’s those types of moves that would be beneficial right about now. The Yankees scooped Hill up after he was released by the White Sox in late June last year. They promoted Jake Cousins back up to the bigs in June of last season as well, a pitcher they snagged from the White Sox in spring training.
Would Cousins’ return from the injured list later this month and a promotion for a Triple-A reliever like Clayton Beeter be enough to provide Boone with more back-end depth, making sure the Yankees’ best relievers stay fresh for the long haul? That would be ideal, but it’s also contingent on everybody else in the big-league bullpen staying healthy.
The expanded playoffs make it tougher to navigate the trade market these days because more teams are hanging around, trying to make a push for the third Wild Card spot in each league. For the Yankees, it might be time to check in with some of the teams that are already plummeting in the standings. If not now, then soon. Maybe they’re already open for business and the Yankees can get ahead of that inevitable trade deadline rush, or at least position themselves to grab the arms they believe will perform at a higher level with a chance to work with their revered pitching department.
Max Goodman may be reached at mgoodman@njadvancemedia.com.