Every year, the Yankees’ bullpen is among the best in baseball, but the front office is still eager to add more players. Hector Neris, a standout relief pitcher for the Houston Astros, was linked to the team on Saturday;Mark Feinsand of MLB.com even went so far as to call them the “front runners.”
Neris, who just finished an amazing season with the Astros, would undoubtedly strengthen the Yankees bullpen. They do, however, still have very valuable internal options. In fact, the unit’s upside might be maximized if the Yankees can finally acquire a healthy Jonathan Loaisiga.
Because of his history of injuries, not many are placing a high value on Loaisiga, but when he’s healthy and playing at his best, few arms can match his output.
He only pitched 17.2 innings last season, giving up 70.4% of hits on base, 53.3% of ground balls, and posting a 3.06 ERA. Although Loaisiga produces a lot of ground balls and makes shaky contact, his strikeout totals are not well-known. In 2021, he had his greatest season yet, pitching 70.2 innings with a 2.17 ERA.
Thankfully, there hasn’t been much of a decrease in his velocity. It has actually averaged about 98 mph, which is exactly in line with his finest professional year.
Despite the toll injury has taken, the Yankees have a high-upside arm with the talent to contribute positively in exchange for a one-year, $2.5 million agreement that avoids arbitration.
Loaisiga has a combination change-up, curveball, and sinker. This previous season, he batted.224 with his sinker, but his curveball is something genuinely exceptional—it gave up no hits in five at-bats. Of course, the sample size is small, but he can be used in high-leverage situations when healthy and has a nasty combination of pitches.
The Yankees bullpen features many interesting arms on paper, such as Loaisiga, Ian Hamilton, Scott Effross back, Clay Holmes, and many more. It would be great to include Neris in the mix, particularly given the uncertainty and injury concerns surrounding the starting rotation.
Fans are constantly searching for ways to increase the team’s potential, of course, but the Yankees’ bullpen may be the greatest in baseball; all that needs to be done is maximize its potential.
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