Aug 17, 2025; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; New York Yankees relief pitcher Luke Weaver (30) pitches against the St. Louis Cardinals during the ninth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images Jeff Curry-Imagn Images

Yankees Reliever Wants to Return After Season

Originally posted on New York Yankees on SI
By Jack Markowski | Last updated Sep 18, 2025 12:00 PM ET

Though there's still plenty of baseball left to be played with the playoffs on the horizon, New York Yankees reliever Luke Weaver has already made it known that he'd like to remain with the club upon reaching free agency this upcoming offseason.

"Yeah, absolutely," Weaver said on the New York Post's "The Show" podcast, per Newsweek's Peter Chawaga. "It's a place where you feel like, they always say, you pitch here, you can pitch anywhere. ... That simply has truth to it."

Weaver has emerged as a reliable late-inning option for the Yankees over the past few years after they essentially picked him off the scrap heap.

A 2014 first-round pick by the St. Louis Cardinals out of Florida State University who was later traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Paul Goldschmidt ahead of the 2019 season, Weaver spent time with both the Cincinnati Reds and Seattle Mariners in 2023 before New York claimed him off waivers from the latter that September.

A former highly-regarded starting pitching prospect, he logged a 3.38 ERA across three outings and 13 1/3 innings to finish off the year in The Bronx.

Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images

Weaver re-signed with the Yankees in January 2024 on a one-year contract worth $2 million that also included a $2.5 million club option for 2025, which was picked up after he excelled to the tune of a 2.89 ERA across 62 regular season appearances before logging a 1.76 ERA over 15 1/3 frames during the team's run to the World Series last fall.

The 31-year-old was in line for the first All-Star nod of his career this season with a 1.05 ERA over 25 2/3 innings until he sustained a hamstring strain that landed him on the injured list in early June.

Weaver was activated later that month, but he's posted a 6.03 ERA over 35 outings and 34 1/3 frames since making his return.

His ERA in September currently sits at 19.29 after allowing five earned runs in one-third of an inning against the Minnesota Twins earlier this week, but the club is hopeful that he can turn things around heading into the postseason.

Even when considering his recent struggles, however, Weaver profiles as one of the top impending free agent relievers and should garner a rather strong market.

Though there's no telling where he may end up this winter, Weaver's made it clear that he'd love to remain with the Yankees.

"This place will always have a special place in my heart and the memories that will come with it and in no way do I necessarily want that to come to an end," Weaver said. "This is winning baseball, this is the peak."

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