Earlier, the Yankees made a few moves to continue to whittle down the spring roster as they get ready for the regular season. The team optioned RHP Deivi García to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and assigned him to minor-league camp. Additionally, the Yanks assigned RHP Matt Bowman, RHP Demarcus Evans, LHP Tanner Tully, RHP Ryan Weber and OF Michael Hermosillo to minor-league camp. The roster cuts and options to minor-league camp are beginning to flow in as we start to get a better understanding of who realistically will be on the Opening Day roster.
Deivi was the one big name to get optioned:
Deivi Garcia getting optioned to Triple-A is a rather impactful move, as it was unclear if he had any options left. What this means is that the Yankees are able to send him down and keep him on the 40-man roster, which could in turn, lead to him getting a call-up sometime this season. He’s been solid this spring and has turned back the clock a bit to when he was a former top prospect. He’s posted a 2.45 ERA, with 7 K’s and a very promising 114.9 stuff+ — 100.0 is average.
If the Yanks can resurrect Deivi, it could mean that they have a bit more pitching depth than many had thought. Last season, they traded away a mass amount of arms and have since been building back up their pitching in the farm system, but multiple guys aren’t entirely MLB-ready. Devi, on the other hand, could certainly see himself on the roster at some point this season.
Tanner Tully and Ryan Weber are the other two impactful ones that were optioned. Tully pitched well this spring, and the groundball-inducing pitcher did just that. He tossed 5.2 innings, allowed 0 runs and only walked one guy. Though his stuff may not be as filthy as other options in the system, he did his job and induced soft contact like no one else. As for Webdog, it’ll be interesting to see if he remains with the organization or chooses to test free agency and see if he can land an opportunity elsewhere.
Weber was a cult hero last season, as he pitched exceptionally well whenever he was tasked with starting for the team. Over 10.2 innings last year, he gave up a single run, walked one guy, struck out a trifecta and only surrendered six hits. He was the definition of solid, and even though he was optioned multiple times, he still did his job for the team.
The Yankees could still use some of these guys for depth purposes:
The other arms optioned didn’t really have a home on the MLB roster, and it’ll be interesting to see what’s next for them. Demarcus Evans appeared in 32 games for the Rangers AAA affiliate last year and posted a 12.00 K/9 but paired it with a 6.00 BB/9 to boot. He posted an ERA & FIP of 3.82 & 4.76 and now looks to prove himself with Scranton.
He may be a guy that gets a call-up at some point this season when there are inevitable injuries over the next four months. Matt Bowman hadn’t pitched since 2019 due to injury, and it showed this spring. He didn’t really have anything working for him, though, in his last start, he did post a zero on the board and struck out two guys. I can imagine Bowman will take the option down and will pitch in AAA simply because there is likely not another team out there wanting to take that chance on him.
Michael Hermosillo also was sent down, but it makes sense considering the other outfield options all outperformed him, aside from Aaron Hicks. He’ll likely look for an opportunity elsewhere, but he may roll the dice with the Yanks’ minor-league system.
Though these six guys aren’t considered everyday contributors, the Yankees are continuing to ween out the competitive from noncompetitive for roster spots. Fortunately, there has been no indication of the major prospects — Domínguez and Volpe — being sent down to minor-league camp just yet. The hope that both guys make the roster remains nothing more than hope at this point, but the latter may not only make the roster but start Opening Day as well.
This spring has been a wild one, filled with countless headlines and guys making a name for themselves. Both Willie Calhoun and Rafael Ortega have taken their opportunities as NRIs and ran with them, so much so that they both may make the OD roster. I can see them getting time in the outfield with Bader’s injury, though I still think Hicks may get more time than both of them.
The season is right around the corner, and these moves further prove that. It’s getting close to meaningful baseball time, and the Yankees are getting prepared for another run at the championship. Maybe this year will be the year they usher in the majority of the kids but also, finally, get that trophy and parade down Broadway.
The Yankees also announced they assign LHP Lisandro Santos and INF Jamie Westbrook to minor-league camp on Wednesday evening.
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