Passing on Bullpen Help Could Doom Yankees

After investing too much in the bullpen over the years, the Yankees have gone to another extreme. They haven't invested anything in it this season outside of Tim Hill. Hill is making pittances, considering this is an organization with one of the most recognizable brands on the planet, and they can fill a stadium on a random Tuesday in April.

It makes little sense to see how much financial restraint they have shown in the bullpen now. It's true that, during their World Series run, Matt Blake's magic was the reason a pen led by Luke Weaver, Jake Cousins, and the aforementioned Hill brought the team to its first October Classic since 2009. Unfortunately, in 2025, after investing next to nothing in the bullpen, the results on the field were reminiscent of the adage that you get what you pay for.

Bullpen Rank

In 2025, the Yankees' 4.37 bullpen ERA ranked 8th-worst in baseball. The only teams worse than them all missed the playoffs. The argument could be that the Dodgers, who signed Diaz, weren't much better. Their 4.27 ERA was the 10th-worst.

Consider the fact, though, that they had Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki coming out of the bullpen by the time October rolled around. The Yankees had Weaver, who had trouble recording an out against the Blue Jays in the ALDS. Poor Will Warren tried his best to do a Yamamoto and Sasaki impression, but the end result was one of the biggest grand slams in the history of the Blue Jays organization.

Missed Deals

Even if the Yankees were cautious in doling out big dollars to relievers, it's not like every pen arm on the market is making Diaz money. There were some great deals in free agency that they completely ignored.

Shawn Armstrong signed for $5.5 million. Tyler Rogers signed a three-year, $37 million contract. Longtime Rays closer Pete Fairbanks signed for $11 million. Veteran lefty Caleb Thielbar signed for $4.5 million. Brad Keller signed a two-year, $22 million contract.

Thoughts and Prayers

The closer situation in 2026 might be more stable with David Bednar, but the rest of the bullpen has a ton of question marks. Jake Bird might get into games and could see improvements after being shipped to the minors shortly after his trade. Then you have Camilo Doval, who will either strike the park out or walk it.

The bridge to the ninth inning is full of hopes, prayers, and question marks. There is still a little less than a month left until pitchers and catchers report, and the Yankees could make a splash in the trade market, the way they did with Devin Williams the previous winter. Still, it would have been better to invest a few more dollars than to ship Jasson Dominguez off to save a buck.

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