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Ryan Weber

Yankees Sign Tanner Tully, Ryan Weber To Minor League Deals

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The Yankees recently signed a number of players to minor league contracts, as reported by Chris Hilburn-Trenkle of Baseball America. Among those that haven’t previously been covered at MLBTR: left-handers Tanner Tully and Nick Ramirez, righty Ryan Weber and infielder Jamie Westbrook.

Tully had spent his entire career in the Cleveland system. A 26th round pick in 2016, he worked his way to the majors for the first time this year. Tully appeared out of Terry Francona’s bullpen three times, allowing four runs in six innings. He spent the bulk of the season at Triple-A Columbus, where he started 24 of 28 outings. Through 122 innings, the Ohio State product put up a 4.72 ERA with a modest 18.5% strikeout percentage but an excellent 4.9% walk rate.

The 28-year-old doesn’t throw hard, averaging just under 91 MPH on his fastball during his MLB time. He’s a quality strike-thrower who has gotten average or better grounder rates in the minors of late. He’ll presumably open the year at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and serve as rotation or long relief depth.

That’s a role with which Weber is also familiar. He spent the 2022 campaign in the Yankees organization, shuttling on and off their roster whenever the club needed to cover some innings. The 32-year-old made five appearances, all in relief. He allowed just one run across 10 2/3 innings with a trio of strikeouts and a walk. That marked his eighth consecutive year logging some big league action, and he has a 5.02 ERA across 177 2/3 career frames.

Like Tully, Weber is a soft-tossing control specialist. He consistently racks up grounders on over half the batted balls he allows, including a robust 53.5% rate in 39 2/3 frames for Scranton this past season. Weber walked just 3% of opponents with the RailRiders, albeit with a 16.5% strikeout rate.

Ramirez, 33, adds some left-handed relief depth to the mix. He appeared in the big leagues in each season between 2019-21, suiting up with the Tigers and Padres. Between the two clubs, he posted a 4.55 ERA with a 20.4% strikeout rate and 9.5% walk percentage across 110 2/3 innings. Ramirez spent the entire 2022 campaign working out of the bullpen with the Mariners highest affiliate in Tacoma. He had a nice season, working to a 2.93 ERA with a 23.7% strikeout percentage and 46% ground-ball rate through 55 1/3 frames. That wasn’t enough to crack an excellent Seattle bullpen, but he’ll try to work his way back to the majors in the Bronx.

Westbrook has yet to play in the big leagues. The 27-year-old has played almost a decade in the minors, spending parts of four seasons at Triple-A. He looked like to be under consideration for an MLB call when the Tigers acquired him from the Brewers in an April trade. That proved not to be, as the former fifth-round draftee spent the year at Triple-A Toledo. Westbrook hit .248/.349/.377 across 499 plate appearances, showing solid plate discipline without much power. He’s primarily a second baseman but has experience in the corner outfield; he’ll add some defensive flexibility to the upper levels of the system.

Ryan Weber Elects Free Agency

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Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. The Yankees announced Monday that right-hander Ryan Weber rejected an outright assignment to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, instead electing free agency.

This marks the fourth time the Yankees have designated Weber for assignment and passed him through outright waivers since June. On each occasion, Weber has rejected the outright assignment, renegotiated a new minor league contract and returned to the organization in a matter of days. It seems eminently plausible that’ll happen yet again; Weber and the Yankees have clearly been comfortable with this arrangement all season, and at this juncture of the schedule, it seems unlikely that he’d jump to a new organization for the final couple weeks of the 2022 campaign. Re-signing would perhaps position him for one more run before the end of the season, should the Yanks yet again need to tap into their Scranton depth.

We’ve seen plenty of veterans ride this DFA carousel and routinely return to the same club, though rarely has it been so extreme. (The most recent similar case, oddly, is another Yankees scenario — with righty David Hale back in 2018.)  It’s an atypical relationship, to say the least, but it’s also one that has paid dividends. Weber has given the Yankees 10 2/3 innings spread over five games this season and allowed just one run, striking out three and issuing one walk along the way. He’s also been sharp in Triple-A, logging 39 2/3 frames of 3.86 ERA ball with a 27-to-5 K/BB ratio.

Weber’s several stints with the Yankees this year have pushed him north of three years of MLB service time, so if he’s re-selected to the 40-man roster at any point between now and season’s end, he’d technically be controllable via arbitration. That said, given the frequency of this summer’s DFAs and outrights, it’s likely he’d be removed from the 40-man again following the season. Weber now carries a 5.02 ERA, 14.6% strikeout rate, 5.3% walk rate and 53.2% ground-ball rate in 177 2/3 Major League innings split between six teams over an eight-year span.

Yankees Activate Aroldis Chapman, Designate Ryan Weber

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The Yankees announced they’ve reinstated reliever Aroldis Chapman from the 15-day injured list. To clear a spot on the active roster, New York designated righty Ryan Weber for assignment. New York’s 40-man roster tally drops to 38.

Chapman missed around three weeks recovering from an infection arising from a tattoo. The bizarre issue marked the latest frustration in what has been a disappointing overall season for the flamethrowing southpaw. Chapman has worked to a career-worst 4.70 ERA across 30 2/3 innings.

His formerly elite strikeout rate has fallen to a slightly above-average 25.7%, while he’s walking batters at an unacceptable 16.2% clip. New York already bumped Chapman from the ninth inning in favor of Clay Holmes, and it remains to be seen where he stands in the left-handed pecking order for manager Aaron Boone as the playoffs approach. Wandy Peralta and Lucas Luetge have each been solid this year, with Peralta thriving against same-handed opponents.

As for Weber, he finds himself in a familiar position. The soft-tossing righty has been on and off the Yankees roster a few times this season, with New York frequently calling upon him as a depth arm. He’s never carved out a permanent spot on the big league club, though, and he’s now been designated for assignment for a fourth time this year. Because he’s out of minor league options, the Yankees continuously have to run him through waivers to take him off the big league roster.

The 32-year-old has remained with New York after each previous DFA, either via accepting an outright assignment to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre or quickly returning on a new minor league deal after electing free agency. He’s pitched well through the constant shuffling, tossing 10 2/3 innings of one-run ball at the MLB level while posting a 3.86 ERA over 39 2/3 Triple-A frames. Weber’s 16.5% strikeout rate with Scranton has been typically modest, but he’s induced plenty of ground-balls and only walked 3% of opponents there.

Yankees Place Andrew Benintendi On IL, Designate Anthony Banda

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The Yankees announced a series of roster moves today, with outfielder Andrew Benintendi heading to the 10-day injured list with right wrist inflammation. Outfielder Estevan Florial was recalled in a corresponding move. Additionally, right-hander Ryan Weber has been selected to the big league club, with lefty Anthony Banda designated for assignment.

Benintendi, 28, left last night’s game after appearing to injure himself on a swing. Last night’s X-rays came back negative, but it seems the ailment is enough that the Yanks will keep him out of action for another ten days at least, as they try to figure out what’s going on. “Just not sure, like, where we thought, may not be injured,” Boone says in the video shared by Marly Rivera of ESPN. “So, they got to get more CT scans. I just got briefed on it a little bit so I really don’t have much for you other than he is going on the IL but it’s a little inconclusive right now exactly what.”

Given that uncertainty, it’s hard to know exactly how serious this will be for the Yankees. However, even a minimum absence could have an impact in this late stage of the season, as there are just over four weeks remaining on the regular season schedule. Acquired from the Royals prior to the trade deadline, Benintendi is having a solid season at the plate, one of his best showings in years. His .302/.371/.397 battling is 21% better than the league average hitter this year, as evidenced by his 121 wRC+. That’s just shy of his career best in that department, as he registered a 123 wRC+ back in 2018.

The Yanks will have to do without his production for at least the next week and a half, with the results of the continued testing still to determine the next steps. Until then, they will have to get by with an outfield mix consisting of Aaron Judge, Aaron Hicks, Oswaldo Cabrera, Marwin Gonzalez, Tim Locastro and Florial. Giancarlo Stanton could theoretically be a factor as well, though he’s been used exclusively in the designated hitter role since returning from his own IL stint. Despite running away with the AL East for much of the season, the club has been in a rough slide lately, seeing their lead over the Rays slip to just five games. They would surely love for someone in that group to step up and make up for Benintendi’s absence in order to help keep them in the driver’s seat down the stretch.

Banda, 29, previously pitched for the Pirates and Blue Jays earlier this year, in addition to a brief stint in the minors for the Mariners. He signed with the Yankees on Sunday and made two appearances in pinstripes. The first one went well enough, as Banda entered the club’s game against Oakland on Sunday with one out and no one on in the fifth. He surrendered a walk sandwiched between two outs to finish the inning. His second appearance came last night and didn’t go nearly as well. With the Yanks down 5-0 to the Rays in the eighth, Banda entered with two men on and faced six batters, walking three of them, hitting another and giving up two singles. That leaves with a 40.50 ERA through two thirds of an inning as a Yankee, though a 6.75 ERA on the season overall. Despite that unfortunate ERA, he does have a career-high 22.2% strikeout rate on the year. The Yankees will place him on outright waivers or release waivers in the coming days, though Banda would have the right to reject an outright assignment in favor of free agency, by virtue of having been previously outrighted in his career.

As for Weber, 32, he’s bounced on and off New York’s roster all year long, generally faring well in brief stints with the big league club. He was first selected in June but was designated for assignment the next day. He cleared waivers, elected free agency and re-signed with the club on a new minor league deal. That same cycle happened two more times, making today the fourth time he’s been selected to the roster, never staying in the majors more than about a week. He has a 1.17 ERA in 7 2/3 innings over those sporadic showings, in addition to a 3.86 ERA in Triple-A for the year. His control has been excellent at both levels, as he has a 3.8% walk rate in the bigs and a 3.0% rate in the minors, much lower than the 9.1% average for an MLB reliever this year.

Lindsey Adler of The Athletic tweeted word from Boone about Benintendi’s IL placement before the moves were officially announced. Bryan Hoch of MLB.com relayed the Banda-Weber swap before the official announcement.

Yankees Re-Sign Ryan Weber, Shane Greene To Minor League Deals

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The Yankees have re-signed right-handers Ryan Weber and Shane Greene to minor league deals, per an announcement from their Triple-A affiliate, the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. Joining that pair in Scranton will be veteran reliever Richard Rodriguez, who inked a minor league deal earlier this month once he’d finished serving an 80-game PED suspension. Rodriguez has been building up with the Yankees’ Florida Complex League affiliate but is now headed for Triple-A.

This is old hat by now for Weber, who is signing his fourth minor league deal of the season with the Yankees. On three different occasions now, Weber has been selected to the 40-man roster, pitched in one game, been designated for assignment and elected free agency after clearing waivers. Each time, he’s returned on a new minor league deal. In all likelihood, this scenario will play out again the next time the Yankees need some length in the bullpen — or possibly a spot start. The journeyman Weber has pitched well both with the Yankees and the RailRiders this season, but his overall track record in the Majors is fairly pedestrian: 174 2/3 innings, 5.10 ERA, 14.7% strikeout rate, 5.4% walk rate.

Greene, meanwhile, made his MLB debut with the Yankees back in 2014 and was traded to the Tigers in the three-team deal that brought Didi Gregorius to the Bronx. He went on to have a long run as a quality setup man and occasional closer for the Tigers and Braves, but Greene’s production has slipped in recent years. He returned to the Yankees on a minor league deal earlier this season and, like Weber, was briefly selected to the Majors and then designated for assignment after one lone appearance, during which he allowed a pair of runs. It wouldn’t be a shock if Greene received another look and again followed the same cycle that Weber has for much of the year.

Ryan Weber Elects Free Agency

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Right-hander Ryan Weber has once again rejected an outright assignment in favor of free agency after clearing waivers, the Yankees announced Tuesday. New York designated Weber for assignment for the third time this season back on July 21.

Weber has gone unclaimed on waivers, rejected a minor league assignment and quickly returned to the Yankees on a new minor league deal following each of his prior DFAs, and it wouldn’t at all be surprising to see that same sequence pan out here. Declining the outright assignment is often a formality, allowing veterans of this ilk to quickly scan the league for potential immediate MLB opportunities and perhaps to negotiate a new opt-out date if they ultimately return to the same organization. It’s clear based on how the season has panned out that Weber is comfortable with the Yankees organization and that they find value in hanging onto him as an experienced depth option.

The 31-year-old Weber has now appeared in three games with the Yanks this season — one per stint — and pitched 7 2/3 innings of one-run ball. He’s punched out just two hitters in that time but also allowed only one walk and induced a massive 60.9% ground-ball rate. His most recent appearance saw him pitch three innings of shutout relief against the Red Sox.

Down in Triple-A this year, Weber has pitched to a 2.55 ERA in 24 2/3 innings while logging a terrific 19-to-1 K/BB ratio. Through parts of eight big league seasons, he has a 5.10 ERA 14.7% strikeout rate, 5.2% walk rate and 53.1% grounder rate in a total of 174 2/3 innings.

Yankees Reinstate Domingo Germán, Designate Ryan Weber

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The Yankees announced a couple of roster moves between games of today’s double-header against the Astros. Right-hander Domingo Germán was reinstated from the 60-day injured list, with fellow righty Ryan Weber being designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

Germán, 29, is starting the second game of the twin bill, which will be his season debut. He’s been on the injured list all season due to shoulder issues. That’s the latest in a series of setbacks that have kept him from living up to the promise he showed a few years ago. In 2019, he threw 143 innings with a 4.03 ERA, 25.8% strikeout rate, 6.6% walk rate and 38.1% ground ball rate.

However, in September of that year, he was placed on administrative leave for violating the Joint MLB-MLBPA Domestic Violence Policy. He missed the entirety of the 2020 campaign while serving his suspension. He returned in 2021 but was limited by shoulder issues to 98 1/3 innings, with his ERA jumping to 4.58 in that stretch.

He recently began a rehab assignment and has been getting stretched out as a starter, throwing six innings in his last outing. He likely has a chance to stick around for a while, as long as he performs well enough. The Yankees have had incredible health in their rotation this year but recently suffered their first injury setback. Luis Severino was placed on the 15-day IL last week with a lat strain and likely won’t begin throwing again until August, manager Aaron Boone told Lindsey Adler of The Athletic.

For now, he’ll slot into the rotation behind Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes, Jameson Taillon and Jordan Montgomery. His performance and Severino’s health could determine how long he sticks around, though there’s also the possibility of the club adding an arm before the August 2 trade deadline. The Yankees have already been connected to Luis Castillo, the top available hurler. Germán still has an option and can be sent down if he gets nudged from the rotation.

As for Weber, he’s bounced on and off the roster all season, with this being the third time he’s been designated for assignment by the Yanks this year. The previous two instances, he cleared waivers and stuck with the team, later getting selected back to the bigs. In between those transactions, he’s thrown 7 2/3 innings in the big leagues with a 1.17 ERA. His 7.7% strikeout rate is very low, but he’s limited walks to a miniscule 3.8% rate and is getting ground balls at a decent 60.9% clip. He’s also thrown 24 2/3 Triple-A innings on the year, with a 2.55 ERA, 18.8% strikeout rate, 1% walk rate and 47.4% grounder rate. The Yankees will have one week to trade him, pass him through waivers or release him. If he clears waivers, he will have the right to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency, but might just stick with Yanks, based on precedent.

Yankees Place Luis Severino On 15-Day IL, Select Ryan Weber

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The Yankees announced they’ve placed starter Luis Severino on the 15-day injured list due to a low-grade strain of his right lat. Righty Ryan Weber was selected onto the big league club in his place. New York also reinstated reliever Jonathan Loáisiga from the 15-day IL, optioning JP Sears to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last night to clear a roster spot. New York already had a 40-man roster vacancy after designating Weber for assignment last week, a job he’ll now reassume.

Severino left last night’s start against the Reds with shoulder tightness. He’d dealt with slightly diminished velocity and was sent for an MRI this morning. That revealed some degree of injury to his lat, though the Yankees’ specification that it’s a low-grade strain is seemingly a positive development. New York hasn’t provided any specifics on a timetable for his return, but he’ll at least miss a start or two coming out of the All-Star Break.

It’s the first time all season the Yankees are dealing with an injury to one of their top five starters. Severino had joined Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes, Jordan Montgomery and Jameson Taillon in staying healthy to this point. Depth starter Luis Gil was lost for the season due to Tommy John surgery, but New York seems likely to welcome back Domingo Germán coming out of the Break. Out all season due to shoulder concerns, Germán has been on a minor league rehab assignment for the past few weeks. Manager Aaron Boone told reporters (including Lindsey Adler of the Athletic) the righty will make another start with Scranton tomorrow, but he could be in consideration for activation not long thereafter.

Weber rejoins the active roster as a multi-inning option out of the bullpen. The journeyman has been on and off the roster a couple times, twice soaking up some frames of relief but being DFA quickly thereafter. Weber has spent the majority of the year with the RailRiders, pitching to a 2.55 ERA through 24 2/3 innings. He has a modest 18.8% strikeout rate in the minors, but he’s walked only one of 101 batters faced while inducing ground-balls at a solid 47.4% clip. That’s also been the general trend over Weber’s parts of eight seasons in the majors — excellent control and a fair number of grounders but below-average velocity and whiff rates.

Yankees Outright Ryan Weber

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TODAY: The Yankees outrighted Weber to Triple-A

JULY 6: The Yankees announced Wednesday that right-hander Ryan Weber has been designated for assignment. His spot on the roster will go to righty Miguel Castro, who’s been reinstated from the paternity list.

Weber, 31, appeared in just one game in his latest Yankees stint, tossing a scoreless inning of relief on just 11 pitches. He’s totaled 4 2/3 innings of one-run ball with the Yankees this season, spending the remainder of the season with their Triple-A affiliate in Scranton. This is the second time Weber has been designated for assignment this season. He cleared waivers, elected free agency and quickly re-signed with the Yankees the first time around. It wouldn’t be a surprise at all to see the same sequence play out once again, as it’s fairly common for journeyman pitchers of Weber’s nature. (See also: Drew Hutchison in Detroit this season)

The Yankees are the seventh Major League team for which Weber has pitched since debuting with the Braves back in 2015. He’s logged big league time each season since that debut but has never appeared in more than 14 games and has maxed out at 43 Major League innings in any given season. Through 171 2/3 innings as a Major Leaguer, Weber has a 5.19 ERA with a well below-average 14.8% strikeout rate but an excellent 5.3% walk rate and a strong 52.9% grounder rate.

The Yankees will have a week to trade Weber, attempt to pass him through waivers or release him.

Yankees Select Ryan Weber

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The Yankees have selected the contract of right-hander Ryan Weber, per a team announcement. He’ll return to their big league roster for a second stint this season. Weber will take the roster spot of lefty JP Sears, who was optioned back to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre following last night’s game.

Weber, 31, appeared with the Yankees once this season already, logging 3 2/3 innings and allowing one run in a long relief outing. It was a one-off appearance for Weber, who was designated for assignment and elected free agency after clearing waivers. He quickly re-upped with the Yanks on a new minor league deal, however (as is fairly common for journeymen arms in this mold), and has continued to pitch well in Scranton. Through 24 2/3 frames for the RailRiders, Weber has a 2.55 ERA with an outstanding 19-to-1 K/BB ratio and a solid 47.4% ground-ball rate.

The Yankees are the seventh Major League team for which Weber has pitched since debuting with the Braves back in 2015. He’s logged big league time each season since that debut but has never appeared in more than 14 games and has maxed out at 43 Major League innings in any given season. Through 170 2/3 innings as a Major Leaguer, Weber has a 5.22 ERA with a well below-average 14.8% strikeout rate but an excellent 5.4% walk rate and a strong 53.2% grounder rate.

It wouldn’t be a surprise to see a similar DFA carousel play out this time around for Weber, but he’ll nevertheless pick up at least a few extra days of big league service time and (most notably for him) Major League pay. Despite appearing in parts of seven MLB seasons, Weber hasn’t yet reached three years of service and has never been arbitration eligible, so even brief Major League stints carry extra weight for him.

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