10:57am: The Yankees have formally announced the contract. Gil was placed on the 60-day IL to open a roster spot for Yarbrough.
9:45am: Yarbrough is guaranteed $2MM on the deal and can earn another $250K via incentives, ESPN’s Jorge Castillo reports. Since the Yankees are in the top tier of luxury penalization, that comes with a 110% tax. Yarbrough will cost them a total of $4.2MM.
9:16am: The Yankees and free agent left-hander Ryan Yarbrough have agreed to a major league contract, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. The Excel Sports client opted out of a minor league deal with the division-rival Blue Jays over the weekend and was granted his release.
Yarbrough, 33, has spent the bulk of his career in the AL East, most of it with the Rays, for whom he pitched from 2018-22. He spent about half the 2024 season with the Jays, pitching well after coming over in a trade with the Dodgers. Yarbrough logged 31 1/3 frames with Toronto and notched a pristine 2.01 ERA with a 22.2% strikeout rate and 6% walk rate.
Yarbrough finished the ’24 season with a career-low 3.19 ERA in 98 2/3 innings, but that came with a paltry 16.3% strikeout rate and one of the tamest fastballs in the sport — averaging just 86.5 mph, per Statcast. Yarbrough sat 89-90 mph as a starter early in his career, but like new teammate Tim Hill, is now more reliant on an unusual delivery and soft contact. Yarbrough rarely allows hard contact (29.4%) and has plus command that helps him offset his lack of missed bats.
That reliance on soft contact does lead to some year-to-year inconsistencies in Yarbrough’s ERA, but the cumulative results have been solid. In 768 big league innings, Yarbrough has a 4.21 earned run average with an 18.7% strikeout rate and 5.5% walk rate. His history as a starter and more recent track record as a multi-inning reliever — last year’s 98 2/3 frames came in 44 appearances — surely held appeal to a Yankees club that has seen its rotation plagued by injuries this spring. Yarbrough probably won’t step into the rotation at any point, but he’s a nice long man to have on hand at a time when rotation depth is thinner than expected. His addition on a big league deal likely pushes waiver claim and fellow southpaw Brent Headrick to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to begin the season.
The Yankees will need to open a 40-man roster spot to make Yarbrough’s deal official, though given that just-mentioned slate of injuries, that shouldn’t be an issue. Gerrit Cole was already moved to the 60-day IL when the team selected Carlos Carrasco’s contract over the weekend, but the Yankees still have multiple 60-day IL candidates. Luis Gil will miss months due to a lat strain, and while an exact timetable for Giancarlo Stanton’s return from tendon injuries in both elbows, it doesn’t seem like he’s a candidate to make his 2025 debut anytime soon.
Lmao love seeing NYY scramble to catch the flotsam tossed aside by division rivals
Tom: Yes, this is surprising. The flotsam usually ends up on the South side of Chicago.
or in Anaheim.
The NYY are the new trash collectors.
Oh how the might have fallen…seriously, it is a move not many saw coming before the season starts. Watch, he’ll have the best season of his career.
Tbh, this is a smart, solid move.
Exactly, and now they won’t have to face him. 57..1 career IP vs NYY with a 2.04 ERA. and a sub 1.00 career WHIP.
What is it against the rest of the league and in Yankee Stadium?
Yaa watching the jays game yesterday when Buck and Dan found out that Lovelady made the team over Yarbrough they were flabbergasted and could tell they really didn’t agree with it. Jays management said they preferred to have a guy who’s a more traditional reliever in the pen instead of a innings guy as they feel they have enough depth in that regard, which I find highly debatable
There was likely more going on than just performance.
We dont know the terms the Jays would have had to offer him, but if its similar to what he just signed for, they may have just been too cheap to sign him. They are in the penalty for the CBT too.
Dick Lovelady is good enough and cheap enough to sit at the back of the bullpen for a few weeks til they demote him.
But we do know what he was signed for just cause this article doesn’t mention it doesn’t mean it wasnt released when the jays signed him
The Yankees are desperate! How can U have a 306M payroll yet U R having to go dumpster diving? LmAo
It just seems like the Yankees doin’ more dumpsta divin’
AL East experienced lefty? It’s exactly what we needed. Yarborough has a better track record than Hill, and he’s done just fine.
Don’t forget that you need lefthanded pitching and lefthanded power to win in Yankee Stadium.
/Though the Yankees now have to pay the Cohen tax to sign someone off the scrapheap.
His heater is between 88-90mph so don’t get your hopes up! Hard to get mlb hitters out unless U R throwing knuckle balls at that velocity!
One person’s trash is another person’s treasure.
its almost like theyve been hit with 3 injuries to their rotation in spring training. not like theres a top SP just sitting there in FA
Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn are available
@JRam
Well, Lance Lynn is. Gibby signed with Baltimore.
Whoops! Missed that signing. Thank you
But Lynn’s output has been quite varied in recent years; Yarborough is as reliable as pitchers get.
Gibson signed so it’s Lynn at this point!
Thats nice. Yarbrough had more WAR than both those guys in 2024.
I like how I say “not like theres a top SP just sitting there” and you bring up Kyle Gibson and Lance Lynn as if those are top SPs or something lmao talk about dumpster diving
@Begamin
Well yeah, it’s called sarcasm lol
@JRamHOF
Guess thats my fault then. Sorry, its hard to tell on here sometimes lol
@99 Who do you want the Yankees to go get at this stage in the off-season? This fanbase is never satisfied even when they’re division champ favorites.
Everybody knows not to trade for Yankee prospects as they are mostly hype and their farm is empty anyway at this point! Already at the Cohen luxury tax level so whatever salary you take on has a 110% added tax! Already short an outfielder and infielder plus a solid starter so the Yankees are pretty much screwed.. This is why I don’t understand why Hal stays with Cashman! This 20th season needs to be his last! Top 2 payrolls year after year yet no rings since 2009 pretty much speaks for itself!
I always lol at these comments, meanwhile the Yanks keep having winning records and Cashman has no issue selling his “overhyped” prospects to make significant trades.
A fan of one of the worst teams in MLB history making fun of the most stories franchise in sports that was just in a World Series? Expert level of stupidity.
Yankee fan picking on a White Sox fan. Expert level of stupidity.
RESPONDING to is not “picking on”. Nice try.
One moron helping another.
One of the most storied franchises in sports paying $4.2 million for Yarbrough is moronic.
Huh? Thats less than the going rate for an average SP. You guys will just say anything. Facebook is prob more your speed gotta be honest
They might be storied but haven’t won in quite a while.They need all the help they can get to finally win a title.By the way,I remember watching Babe Ruth pitch.I was mad when they Traded him to the Yankees.
My point was that a White Sox fan has ZERO business mocking the Yankees on here. They shouldn’t mock a little league team at this point.
Oh, I see your point now. White Sox fans have ZERO business stating their opinions on public message boards about storied franchises. I’m not a White Sox fan so am I allowed to share my opinion?
Jetsam.
To be honest, a lot of Jays fans are surprised they didn’t add him to the roster. If anything I think the Yankees capitalized on a bad move by the Jays’ management.
Blake helps all these types. He’ll be serviceable.
@tom
so the Yanks are bad for signing a guy with a low 3ish era@, even tho his FIP was hire? that’s a bad thing? they have a need and he became available for a small amount. yall criticize anything. had this been any other team it would be called “sneaky good”.
Brian Cashman: “how you like me now?”
Nice
A solid veteran arm is always a good add, especially at a rock bottom price.
Even better is adding a lefty swingman.
Solid move here by Cashman
This was a stupid move by the Jays to keep Barnes and Lovelady, who are really bad, over Yarbrough who has performed well for them both in 24 and this spring.
@TennVol
“stupid move” is the motto of this front office.
Very solid move! Love it!
Even with the tax, 4.2 million is still a really good price for a guy that can be a starter and come out of the bullpen, and another lefty helps! Nice move by Cashman!
100%. Sometimes this last minute additions work out nicely.
This is a great move. Not a lot of quality depth around this time of year
Confused at why he opted out of one minor league deal just to sign another one? I suppose he must see a clearer path to MLB playing time with New York.
“Clearer path”..yep.
Major League deal
This is what I get for commenting on MLBTR before I had my coffee
@giantboy99
thx. you beat me to it.
@Meow
http://www.RIF.org
No apparently it’s a major league contract. I heard Wander Franco just signed a minor league contract?
Really? Is that an actual rumor or is this some kind of subtle reference/joke?
This is a major league deal.
It’s a major league contract.
Condolences to the Gardner family.
Yes. Very sad.
“Very sad”. Yes. Condolences. Unfortunately, the Gardner case has taken a somewhat bizarre, dark turn; the coroner has ruled it death by asphyxiation. This is very sad indeed.
The veracity is however accurate the New York Post is. They’re reporting that local(Costa Rican?) doctors examined young Gardner and ruled death by asphyxiation.
RIP.
One man’s trash…
Could be a clever little pick up by Cashman.
Love it, we need depth, we need stability, we need versatility, we need lefties, perfect fit for the roster.
Good move by the Yankees. We desperately need starting pitching right now with all the injuries. I like it.
Cookie insurance in case he crumbles.
Still can’t believe they went with Barnes and Lovelady instead… two not so good arms are better than one decent one I guess? lol
Solid move.
I’ll give Cashman this- despite the Yankees’ vast resources and record breaking contracts for high profile free agents or homegrown All-Stars, etc. Cashman consistently finds diamonds in the rough of the scrap heap for short but impactful stints with the Yankees, so this signing bodes well.
The Yankees also must have a ton of faith in Yarbrough if they’re willing to overpay for him by $2.2M just to get him.
@TrillionaireTeamOperator If he can make around 7 starts, he’d already be worth 2 mil considering the going rate for a 5th starter has been around 10 to 12 million
Good signing for the Yankees. I was surprised the Jays let him go. His low-velocity, high-contact profile (86.5 mph fastball, 29.4% hard-hit rate) could be weaponized as a chaos agent against analytically rigid lineups. Teams like the Guardians or Twins, who lean on contact-heavy hitters optimized for high-velo whiffs, have batting algorithms that overfit to power pitchers. Yarbrough’s soft-tossing deception (5.5% walk rate, multi-inning stamina) disrupts this, potentially dropping their expected wOBA by 20-30 points in small samples.
Can’t wait to see this guy throw a no hitter against the Guardians
@JRamHOF
Against the Jays would be better irony.
@JRamHOF
He’ll be the secret weapon against the lowly Dodgers.
Now let’s grab another righty bat that is sorely needed.
Great signing by Cash. Take notes Stearns, this is how you fill an injured rotation
At the start of S.T.:
Cole/Fried/Rodon/Gil/Schmidt plus Stroman, Warren, Beeter, Brubaker, Cookie
to Yarbrough as possible #5/opener now.
What a ride
In search of a Trifecta the Yankees are soon expected to make further additions to their roster as they seek to RUN to the top of their division as they DRIVE towards the post season in their CHASE to add to the team’s RACE to the FINISH LINE.
Expect the additions of:
CALE YARBOROUGH
AND
LEROY YARBOROUGH
Excellent signing
This is not a dumpster dive
This is a very smart grab before another smart GM got him
Excellent WHIP
This guy knows how to pitch !!!
I understand he has a low strikeout rate but he consistently posts solid numbers. Hard to believe he couldn’t find a job until now
Perfect scenario they squeeze 75 to a 100 innings out of him
despite all the ridicule, The Yankees have actually made a good move here. I remember him as an opponent. He’s a pretty good picture. They’re not expecting them to be a Young award winner. Just a piece of their bullpen and you can never have too much pitching as they say, he could eat innings he can do a lot of things. although I have problems with a lot of their moves, this is not one of them
Dear Yankee fans,
You know I’m a jerk and hope that the Yankees go 0 and 162 every year for eternity. But the story about Brett Gardner’s son passing breaks my heart. This is not about baseball, but how precious life is for all of us. This should never happen but I know it does and it’s truly sad.
Your friend (just your enemy in baseball).