Aug 4, 2025; Arlington, Texas, USA; New York Yankees relief pitcher Jake Bird (59) in action during the game between the Texas Rangers and the New York Yankees at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

Yankees Made Wrong Call at Deadline?

Originally posted on New York Yankees on SI
By Erin Shapland | Last updated Aug 7, 2025 7:00 AM ET

The New York Yankees chose to prioritize pitching depth at the trade deadline, and their new relievers are off to a rocky start to say the least. With five losses and just one win under their belt in the week since, it's time to start looking at how their decision might affect their playoff chances based on teams with similar strategies in recent years.

Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

ESPN's David Schoenfield weighed the post-deadline performances of teams who prioritized loading up on relievers in previous seasons, beginning in 2018. His conclusion? Absolutely anything could happen.

"Bottom line: Bullpens are forever unpredictable, which means anything can happen over the next two months for the teams that hoped to make upgrades," Schoenfield wrote. "Bullpens are even more unpredictable in October, when the limited number of games and extra days off mean any pen can get hot -- see Atlanta [Braves] in 2021 and Texas [Rangers] in 2023 -- and even great relievers can have a couple of bad games that might cost a team a playoff series. And if your offense doesn't score runs, your top relievers won't get to close out leads anyway."

Schoenfield discussed the similar moves by the New York Mets, Detroit Tigers, Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies and San Diego Padres to boost their relief for the home stretch, but ended on the Yankees, whose statistically talented new relievers have caused almost nothing but strife since arriving in the Bronx.

"And the Yankees? The bullpen looks good on paper -- and, hey, it could get hot at the right time in the playoffs. If the Yankees even get in."

His pessimism is warranted. David Bednar, who was just traded to the Yankees from the Pittsburgh Pirates, saved the day in their third game against the Texas Rangers, allowing the Yankees to hold onto their AL Wild Card spot — for now. They are 6.5 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays and 4 games behind the Boston Red Sox in the AL East, and though they've bought themselves a little bit of wiggle room with this win, their performance since June 1 (26-32) suggests that it won't last.

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