The Yankees have assembled one of the nastiest bullpens in baseball.
New York inked a one-year, $2.85 million contract to retain left-handed reliever Tim Hill. The deal – which includes a $3 million team option for the 2026 season – secures the team an essential lefty in the arm barn.
“Tim had his eyes set on the Yankees,” Hill’s agent, Garrett Parcell, told Garry Phillips of the Daily News. “It’s a team he believes in. He wants to win a World Series.”
Hill, 34, joined the Yankees last season after he was released by the White Sox in June, and he quickly became one of the club’s most reliable relievers. In pinstripes, the fan-favorite held a 2.05 ERA in 44 innings across 35 appearances and boasted the highest ground ball rate in the majors (68.2%) with his whacky sidearm release.
He was also instrumental in the Yankees’ World Series push, taking the mound in 10 of the team’s 14 postseason games. There, he allowed just one earned run across 8.1 frames.
The Bronx bullpen – commanded by pitching coach Matt Blake – was already imposing last season. But following the World Series, the team lost changeup maestro Tommy Kahnle to the Tigers and All-Star closer Clay Holmes to the Mets.
However, Hill’s return to the bullpen wraps a bow on an even better one.
In early December, New York reunited with flamethrower Jonathan Loaisiga on a one-year contract with a team option for 2026. The righty has been plagued by injuries in recent seasons, and likely won’t be available until April. But when he’s healthy, he’s untouchable.
Still just 30 years old, Loaisiga hurls a lethal 98-mph sinker that provides the Yanks with much-needed velocity in the middle-to-late innings. His best season was in 2021, when he shoved for 70.2 innings across 57 appearances with a 2.17 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, and 69 strikeouts.
The Yankees also traded for a strikeout artist in right-hander Fernando Cruz, whom they acquired from the Cincinnati Reds in exchange for catcher Jose Trevino. At the same age as Hill, Cruz befuddles batters with his signature splitter.
Last season, he boasted the highest K/9 (14.72) and the third-highest strikeout rate (37.8%) in the majors.
Rounding out the Yankee pen this season is All-Star closer Devin Williams, a two-time Reliever of the Year, who was acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for starter Nestor Cortes.
Like Cruz, Williams wields one of the grossest pitches in baseball: a mind-boggling changeup that has earned him the nickname, “the Airbender.”
Since his major-league debut in 2019, the 30-year-old righty holds the second lowest ERA (1.83), fourth highest K/9 (14.3), and the lowest H/9 (4.9) among MLB relievers with at least 200 innings pitched.
Last month, Williams was named the top reliever in baseball for the upcoming season by MLB Network.
Williams spoke with reporters shortly after he was traded, where he explained that while he wasn’t too familiar with every arm in the Yankee system, he was particularly excited to form a one-two punch with right-hander Luke Weaver at the back of the bullpen.
“It seems like there’s a lot of talent,” Williams said. “I watched Weaver a lot in the playoffs. He’s got some special stuff.”
It was a no-brainer for New York to pick up the 31-year-old Weaver’s club option after – by far – the best season of his career.
Weaver, the self-proclaimed “ferocious jungle cat,” took over the team’s closing role towards the end of last season and finished his 2024 campaign with a 2.89 ERA, 0.989 WHIP, and 103 strikeouts across 84 frames. Weaver remained an anchor for the Yanks’ bullpen in October, holding down a 1.76 ERA with 16 strikeouts in 15 ⅓ innings.
Williams also gave flowers to 30-year-old righty Jake Cousins. He was impressed with his “elite slider,” which happens to have the fifth highest strikeout rate (47.5%) of any such pitch in the league.
The Yankees’ starting rotation – consisting of Gerrit Cole, Max Fried, Carlos Rodon, Luis Gil, and Clarke Schmidt – is stacked in its own right. But when their nights come to an end, the bullpen will be ready to answer the call.
