The Yankees are signing right-hander Duane Underwood Jr. to a minor league contract, reports Jon Heyman of The New York Post. The righty will receive an invite to major league Spring Training.
Underwood, 29, had a challenging year in 2023. He tossed 24 1/3 innings for the Pirates with a 5.18 earned run average. His 44% ground ball rate was solid but he struck out just 14% of batters faced while giving out walks at an 11% clip. He also threw 20 innings in Triple-A with a 6.30 ERA. He was outrighted by the Pirates during the season and elected free agency in October.
Despite that rough season, the Yanks are likely intrigued based on the previous two campaigns. Over 2021 and 2022, Underwood threw 130 innings with a 4.36 ERA, 21.1% strikeout rate, 9% walk rate and 45.7% ground ball rate. He might have been unlucky in that time, with his .324 batting average on balls in play and 66.5% strand rate each falling on the unfortunate side of average. That’s why his 3.68 FIP in that stretch looks far nicer than his ERA.
Underwood will provide the Yanks with a bit of non-roster depth for the bullpen. If he is able to crack the roster at any point, he is out of options, meaning he couldn’t be sent back down to the minors without first being exposed to waivers. His service time clock is currently between three and four years, meaning he could be retained for future seasons via arbitration if things go especially well in 2024.
Underwood or Underwater?
Undertaker. He buries games that should’ve been won.
Underoos is also acceptable as is Underwood the bedeviled ham.
after a year it’ll be Underrated, yankees will turn him into a beast!!!
Cmon, I’m as big a Yankee fan as they come and I have to admit they have been terrible at developing talent for awhile now. Even high profile players with success on other teams come to NYY and take HUGE steps backwards
Blake is an excellent pitching coach. He has done a pretty decent job so far with reclamations. Underwood was a pretty decent prospect for the Cubs that has shown flashes of being decent. It’s cheap with upside. The kind of deal that makes Hal wet his pants.
Nah they will get at least half a season from Rodon this year before he hits the shelf again for a year and a half. Cole is planning to opt out so he will be a Cy contender again. They addressed the holes in the lineup. They should be chasing Montgomery not Yamamoto. Like every Japanese crossover he will blow out his elbow in year one. Darvish is the only one I can think of in the last 10-15 years that didn’t have UCL trouble year 1. Montgomery and a true bullpen stud like Hader they will chase a championship. I think this is Cashman’s put up or shut up year. He hasn’t traded so many prospects for 1 year players in over 15 years. So, I hope you are right and they suck it up this year so hopefully Cashman gets his walking papers. If they are anywhere close at the deadline he will be going all in though.
its really not a good idea to spend 20mil a year on a closer… hader is also going to regress as he gets older. Whoever doesn’t sign him is dodging a bullet
I was thinking Tom Underwood who pitched for the Yankees back in 1980 if anyone remembers.
Also a Philly isn’t it?
It’s been a busy transactions week for recent Pirate hurlers.
Pirates tried to make him a high-leverage guy when that’s now who he is. Struggled nearly everytime he was given a late/close game situation. They should have just left him in the long/middle relief role he had in 2021 and did fairly well in.
You’re correct! Unfortunately our pitching coaches up to Shelton, have no clue how to develop pitchers. I feel Underwood will do a Clay Holmes and move up into a regular position for the Yankees. It always seems to happen with our throw aways
“Duane Underwood” – That’s a funny way to spell Yamamoto…..
Jankees are filling out their starting 5 with this signing. They need to give up already. Another 4th place finish this year!
“Fourth”…. That’s a funny east to spell first.
Who?
Blair underwood the actor…you know…
I was thinking Matthew Underwood from Zoey 101
His second cousin Frank from the other Carolina was notable in DC a while back.. not so much recently.
These guys are useful as short term call-ups. If a roster player isn’t available when there’s a short-term need at the ML level, these guys can do some mop-up duty, then be exposed to waivers when the emergency is over. If they don’t pass through waivers, no big deal. It can, for example, help avoid having to add a prospect to the 40 man prematurely.
Maybe the Yankees can trade him back to Pittsburgh next week for more International bonus money.
If he’s your 11th or 12th guy in the bullpen, you’re in pretty good shape. If he’s trying to hold leads for you, it’s time to go shopping for an upgrade.
Probably another Cashman scrap heap find who turns in to an ace reliever.
no idea why the yankees keep wasting time on broken pirate pitchers like underwood and clay holmes
If the Yanks are truly all in for 2024 then they need to go all out for Yamamoto, then sign one of Montgomery, Kershaw, Montas, and then sign Hader as the closer. Then do whatever is necessary to off load Stanton, that is if you get anyone stupid enough to bite.