Ryan Yarbrough signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the New York Yankees on Monday, a day after he was released from a minor league deal with the Toronto Blue JaysYarbrough, a 33-year-old left-hander with a light sidearm delivery, can earn an additional $250,000 in performance bonuses for innings.
Ryan is 53-40 with a 4.21 ERA in 68 starts and 128 relief appearances over seven seasons with Tampa Bay (2018-22), Kansas City (2023), the Dodgers (2023-24), who acquired him on July 30 in the trade that sent outfielder Kevin Kiermaier to Los Angeles
Last season, he went 5-2 with a 3.19 ERA in 44 relief appearances.
Ryan Yarbrough throws a sinker (28.7% of his pitches last season), a curveball (27.5%), a four-seam fastball that averaged 86.7 mph (18.4%), a changeup (15.5%) and a cutter (9.9%).
His four-seam fastball velocity was the slowest in Major League Baseball among 138 pitchers who threw 1,500 or more pitches, 1 mph slower than Kyle Hendricks, who ranked 137th.
Ryan accepted a minor league contract with Toronto on February 21 and had a 4.05 ERA in 6 2/3 innings in four spring training appearances, striking out eight and walking one.
The American League Rookie of the Year, Luis Gil, a right-hander who was unable to play due to a strained right lateral muscle, was placed on the 60-day disabled list.
Is he a direct alternative to Gerrit Cole?
The truth is that Ryan is not coming in to cover for Gerrit as the main starter, the roles and styles are very different between the two, Yarbrough’s skills are more of a more versatile pitcher, he is a more flexible starter and he has shown it in his great career
It seems that the Yankees want to improve their bullpen and add more options to the pitching staff, especially after the injury problems that have impacted the team this spring
With information from LAPRESSE
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