The Yankees announced Monday that they’ve claimed right-hander Parker Bridwell off waivers from the Angels and designated utility infielder Ronald Torreyes for assignment.
Bridwell, 27, could potentially give the Yanks some rotation depth. He’s only a season removed from 121 innings of 3.64 ERA ball with the 2017 Halos, though his secondary metrics never made that output appear sustainable. Bridwell averaged just 5.4 strikeouts per nine innings pitched that season and stranded nearly 80 percent of the runners allowed — neither of which are conducive to long-term success. Bridwell is also out of minor league options, so he’ll have to be carried on the 40-man roster all winter and break camp with the team in 2019 or else once again be exposed to waivers.
New York may well plan to try to sneak Bridwell through waivers themselves, as he’s already been passed up on by most of the teams in MLB. League-specific waiver priority applies in August but not the offseason, meaning that every team but the Astros and Red Sox passed on claiming Bridwell.
Obviously, the addition of Bridwell does nothing to limit the Yankees’ continued approach to add to the rotation this winter. New York has already added a pair of starters in trading for James Paxton and re-signing CC Sabathia, but there’s still an additional need in the rotation — especially once Sonny Gray is inevitably traded — and the Yanks will continue to be tied to several of the top names on both the trade and free-agent markets.
The versatile Torreyes has been a usable utility piece for the Yankees over the past three seasons, though his OBP dropped to an unpalatable .294 last season. He’s a .281/.308/.374 hitter in his three seasons in Yankee Pinstripes and has seen action at second base, third base, shortstop and in right field.
Is he going to be a starter or reliever? And I guess this means they don’t want to spend a lot on big pitchers like Corbin? Typical Cashman
He’s going to be insurance and depth if he even makes a roster coming out of spring training.
They will get either Corbin or Happ, wish they would get 3 more pitchers if they wanna get anywhere.
Sevey is like the 2 faces of Eve, Tanaka loves his Homer’s, and CC, he needs to pitch through the 3rd next year
The secrets out ey.
Stick with the WNBA!!!
hahaha
I love her!!!
But that’s DEF her masquerading as Warner Wolf
I’m confused why Patrick Corbin is demanding a six year deal. He’s had one great season, and one good season. Why would any team give him a contract like that. He also would do poorly in the AL East and Yankee Stadium. I understand if Cashman doesn’t sign him even though he’s the best available pitcher. JA Happ is a better choice
Corbin is the top FA SP in a SP starved league.
He can demand whatever he wants. Disagree Happ is better choice. J.A. Happ wet the bed in his 2018 lone playoff opportunity for NYY, and Corbin is seven years younger than Happ. Corbin is 29 years old, Happ is 36.
Corbin is the better choice.
You’re most definitely right on Corbin being the best FA starting pitcher available this year. He could just now be coming into his own, and that one good year thing is a weak point anyway. He’s younger than Happ, always wanted to be a Yankee, and maybe he takes less years to play in NY. Get signing him done, and move on to inking Harper at the Winter Meetings.
Well of course Corbin is the better choice. But Happ would cost about $100m less and has already proven he can handle NY/Yankees Stadium/AL East. That’s worth a lot. Pitching in the NL West and going to the AL East sounds like a recipe for trouble.
He’s also not yet signed so why shouldn’t he shoot for the moon?
But you can’t go by one post season. Happ is very consistent, and is AL East proven. Has a good track record against Boston. Corbin could be like Jarret Wright, Kevin brown, AJ Burnett, etc. coming over from the NL. I can understand being cautious on him.
Imagine thinking a waiver claim of Parker Bridwell means they’re not going to go after elite SPs
I know. raytown17 won just for getting credible responses.
If and when the Yankees sign a free agent pitcher, this one likely gets DFAed. No?
Big News! I suppose the name fooled you but it is not Cashman who controls the Yankees cash, it is owner Hank Steinbrenner. And last year was the first year since he took over that the Yankees were under the luxury tax cap.
Hal Steinbrenner runs Yankees NOT his brother Hank
I liked Ronald on the Yankees, was hoping to see him stay
That’s gonna kill Judge
Big mistake.
Torreyes was loved his teammates. He was especially tight in a group of young players – Didi, Andujar, and Gleyber. He mentored those young guys.
Cashman is sticking it to that group this offseason. Especially the nonsense with Machado and Andujar’s defense. Pure BS. The Red Sox rolled to and through the WS with 3B’s that were awful fielders. From what I saw, Devers and Nunez were worse then Andujar. 3B is probably the least important defensive position on the field. You don’t spend an additional $30 mm a year to improve D @ 3B. That’s nuts (not to mention the line-up being so RH heavy that Stanton, Judge, Andujar, and Sanchez are liable to only hit against a LH pitcher in BP).
Have lost total respect for Cashman. If he’d had 2 decent (not great) starters to go with Severino, Tanaka, and Sabathia in late June-early July, the Yankees would have won the WS. He built a team, and now he’s playing 1980’s George by breaking it up and throwing money at sexy free agents. George had the highest payroll in MLB during the 80’s and early 90’s, yet never made the playoffs.
Cant find a worse fielder than Nunez …even Andujar is painfully better.
Wrong, they were in the WS in 1981.
Agreed Omg. and they all in and out of baseball Samuel think Cashman is a genius NOT!!
A total KLUTZ all over that field
Well Nunez does ok when he’s not in pain , so I think you need to look at the fact the Redsox won when everyone was trashing them, picking the Evil Empire to crush them. You need not nit pick on the champs, look to the fact the WS champs rolled over the Evil Empire!
Eileen, if you ever get into a JAM, give me a holler. I want to PRESERVE what we once had. I’m so JELLY of the other clown. Hugs & kisses.
He’ll get picked up quick. My guess is he gets traded before getting released for a young pup that doesn’t need protection from the rule 5 draft. Mets anyone?
I doubt anyone will be much of a fight for an 80 OPS+ utility infielder. Not useless but guys like Torreyes aren’t hard to find. Good chance he ends up signing a minor league contract with the Yankees if he goes unclaimed.
Agreed
The angels should pick him up. They need versatility and it would end up being a 1 for 1 swap
They need a lot more but it’s a start
And the Yankees have found their 5th starter!
Depth never hurts.
Completely facetious. Fine move.
All those Yankees fans that said Torreyes was the future at the beginning of last season are crying now.
Do you mean Torres? The rookie 2B/SS??
I don’t remember one Yankee fan that ever said that.
I think they were talking about Torres
Not a single Yankee fan ever said that
Right!?? Don’t get me wrong, I’m pissed that Toe is gone but he wasn’t the future of the Bombers by any means.
He’s confused
omg, yes, lmao gnee
Hi Arlene!
Completely confused.
YourDaddy – Man you must feel embarrassed confusing Ronald Torreyes with Gleyber Torres because they have slightly similar last names…yikes. Even if you had no clue about names and players, why would the Yankees just drop a young top prospect? What a bad post you wrote.
I’m upset. Torreyes is entirely replaceable but I still love him.
No more Toe-night Show.
Luke, we all do and that dugout will be a lonely place without him, especially Judge!!
What the hell are you talking about?
You don’t hang out in the dugout. You’re lucky to afford a nosebleed seat.
New screen name…same old Eileen.
JDGOAT’s sinister alter ego.
Torreyes hit .280 last year and plays almost every position for them other than Catcher. (20 at 2B, 9 at Short, 11 at 3B)
Strike that. Toe’s our emergency Catcher 😉 Not a fan of this
Compared to ey, aka Warner Wolf on progesterone, you don’t know baseball like she does!
He does have 20,000 more inane posts this year. Volume carry’s the day.
I understand DFA’ing Torreyes, but confused as to why they’d have interest in this guy. Looking at his minor league numbers, nothing about his underlying peripherals suggest there’s anything there. 5.4 career K/9 in the minors. Pretty awful.
He’s more accomplished in the bigs then your typical waiver wire fodder. 2017 he tossed up a nice mid 3 ERA in 120 innings. FIP and xFIP didn’t like him at all but it’s a roll of the dice. They could try to sneak him through waivers again tomorrow
This IS NOT their fifth starter. Anyone saying that has lost their mind. This guy is an innings eater-relief pitcher / spot starter at best.
Did anyone say it seriously. I sure didn’t.
wait
..what?
RT would be a nice fit for the Royals as a backup SS / 2B to Mondesi and Lopez/Merrifield.
Toe nooooo…
I said my class to Torreyes! Long live the Toe Night Show!
People always dismiss intangibles since they aren’t quantifiable. But Torreyes brought an infectious enthusiasm to the team when he was there. I enjoyed watching the Yankees the year before when they had fun and he was a big
part of it. Last year, not so much. Now I have to go find a Torreyes t shirt on clearance so I can rep him
I agree Torreyes will be missed, was always ready when needed
Wait why did they designate Torreyes when Didi literally just got injured. It was only the most logical conclusion to have him fill in for Didi while he is on the DL
They have other options, not that I’m saying those options are better. Also, I doubt Torreyes would’ve been Didi’s replacement anyway. I like Hecchavoria more too.
He filled in nicely for Didi (&Castro) before, I dont see why he couldnt do it again. I agree that there are options though. I just dont think there are that many options. Has Hecchavoria even been resigned? I know they have Wade, who I think should get another shot at being the utility guy. Slick defender, good speed, just needs to figure out how to get the ball in play more.
Thank god now I don’t have to hear Yankee fans all day on the radio about how he should be playing everyday and how great he would be if given a chance
Agree though he is Judge’s buddy may have an effect
This certainly has the potential to be a very sneaky good move for the Yankees. Bridwells numbers at nearly every level are pretty mediocre, but at worst he’s respectable rotation depth heading into the season and could be much more than that. Bottom-line results are obviously much more important than anybody else, but Bridwell’s Fastball/Curveball spin rates are elite and the Yankees organization has recently shown a knack for improving mediocre pitchers
According to baseballsavant, Bridwell’s fastball ranks 65th out 800+ in Bauer units (spin rate/velocity) among pitchers who through at least 100 4-seamers in 2017-2018. His curve is 38/446 in spin during the same timeframe.
I agree with your insight on his spin rates. If he sticks, they could develop him into another David Warren type pitcher. I am still upset that the Yankees let Nathan Eovaldi go to the Red Sox. He definitely would have been an excellent bottom of the rotation starter!
Did you mean Adam Warren?
Yankees didn’t deliberately let Eovaldi go to the Red Sox. They didn’t tender Eovaldi a contract a couple years back after they found out he needed his 2nd TJ surgery. Then he was signed to a deal with the Rays as he made his way back from injury and the Rays eventually traded him to the Sox.
Aw that’s sucks, he was a good UTIL guy. Hope he finds a way back to NY
Typical Cashman when it comes to pitchers…throw $#!+ against the wall and let’s see what happens.
If this guy sticks….IF…he could be a replacement for AJ Cole as the long man. After a decent start to his Yankees career Cole wet the bed and was awful. We all know Gray is gone, and you don’t want the kids, who they may groom as starters in the pen, to come out once or so a week, so why not this guy? You cannot do much worse than Cole….
And as far as Toe, there is just nowhere for him to play. All positions he can play are taken, with better guys waiting as depth. Yes, the Yankees currently need a replacement for Didi, but I have a feeling the Yankees will sign a guy.
I have this feeling that the Yankees may sign Machado and trade Andujar for another starter. I think this would be a mistake because Andujar can hit, but it may be the way they go.
“All positions he can play are taken”
“the Yankees currently need a replacement for Didi”
hmmmmmmmm
This is a good signing! Parker has good stuff. I remember him coming up through the baltimore system playing on some bad teams. If he is healthy he could be a 5th starter no problem otherwise long relief. Its a no brainer low risk high reward. I could see him going 11w 6L with a 4 era again if healthy. Snd as far as R Torreyes goes they have tyler wade, locastro and that other utility inf from texas whose name slips me at the moment.. he is totally expanable. Hecchavaria should be resigned as a temporary replacement for didi. That guys glove is great! Cant hit but they have enough offense
Torreyes performance may had dropped last year, but having the Yankees sending him down even when he was producing and having family issues will affect his performance. I sometimes feel the Yankees do not have any faith in a ballplayer 5’8. Only if the Scooter was alive today to comment on the Yankees would have been enlightening.
Not the biggest deal, but Torreyes is a good bench piece and he was dropped for someone that will never have any impact to the team. Bad move, even if insignificant.
Yes, and I said they have better guys waiting for depth and that they will likely sign someone.
They don’t value Toe, and I can’t blame them. He’s a light hitting infielder, not a very good on base guy or pinch runner. If they get Machado or Daniel Murphy, which they likely will, Toe has no position. The guy they just picked up from the Dodgers seems to be a better fit than Toe and more valued by Yankees brass.
Sorry, having a guy because he’s “fun” isn’t a reason to clog up a 40 man roster spot.
Picking words out in my post isn’t doing anything to contribute to this discussion.