Yankees' bullpen makeover comes with extra closers and needed team control

Gary Phillips, New York Daily News on Jul 31, 2025

Published in Baseball

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NEW YORK — The Yankees needed a few bullpen upgrades before Thursday’s trade deadline.

They ended up with a full-blown makeover.

Brian Cashman acquired three relievers prior to the 6 p.m. ET deadline, first landing David Bednar from the Pittsburgh Pirates. Then came Jake Bird via a swap with the Colorado Rockies. Yet another righty relief arm followed, as Cashman dealt for the San Francisco Giants’ Camilo Doval as the clock ticked down.

Bednar and Doval were closers for their previous employers, combining for 32 saves this season and 208 for their careers. Bednar comes over with a 2.37 ERA this year, while Doval brings a 3.09 mark.

“They’re three incredible pitchers,” said Devin Williams, the Yankees’ incumbent closer. “You got a lot of options for [Aaron Boone] now. It’s kind of hard to go wrong.”

With so many closers — Luke Weaver has also filled the role in each of the last two years — could Boone deploy a closer by committee system?

“No, not necessarily,” the manager said when asked. “I mean. Devin’s throwing the ball so well right now. Obviously, he had a tough one [Wednesday] night, but he’s been pretty awesome for a while. The reality is we have a number of guys that are more than capable of getting the final three outs, so we’ll see as we go and kind of match that up.”

Cashman added that it was up to Boone to decide on roles and usage.

“Our intent was not necessarily who slots where as much as giving as many quality choices to match up on a daily basis as we move forward,” the general manager said.

Acquired from the Milwaukee Brewers over the offseason, Williams began the year as the Yankees’ closer, struggled early on, lost the job to Weaver, and then reclaimed the gig after Weaver went on the injured list earlier with a hamstring strain.

Williams has mostly been sharp since his initial demotion, recording a 3.51 ERA and 13 saves over his last 35 games. That stretch coincided with him deciding to call his own pitches on PitchCom.

A two-time National League reliever of the year, Williams was downright filthy from May 7 through the end of June, posting a 1.45 ERA. However, July has been tougher for him, as he’s allowed at least one earned run in five of his 11 outings this month.

Williams has a 5.01 ERA and 17 saves overall.

While it doesn’t sound like Williams will have to share closing duties anytime soon, Bednar or Doval could be his eventual successor.

That’s because Williams is slated for free agency this winter, as is Weaver. The Yankees have recently stayed away from big-money contracts for relievers, so it’s notable that they added two experienced closers who are under team control beyond this year.

Bednar won’t be a free agent until after the 2026 season, while Doval is under team control through the 2027 campaign.

Bird isn’t a closer, but he won’t be a free agent until after the 2028 season.

“I’d say it’s a benefit,” Cashman said when asked if he consciously targeted controllable arms. “But we definitely had conversations with rental relievers, not just controlled relievers.

“There are certainly benefits to control, no doubt about that, but I think more than anything, it’s about the quality of the player we had interest in, and then the ability to match up [with other teams].”

Regardless of their present and future roles, the Yankees are confident that their newcomers will beef up a battered bullpen that entered Thursday’s win over the Rays with a 4.89 ERA since June 1. That was the fifth-worst mark in the majors.

With Ian Hamilton and Yerry De los Santos optioned following the game and Mark Leiter Jr., Fernando Cruz and Ryan Yarbrough all expected to come off the injured list in the coming days and weeks, there’s still room for more improvement, too.

For now, Boone is excited to mix and match with some new toys.

He specifically highlighted Bednar, a two-time All-Star who has returned to form this season after logging a 5.77 ERA last year.

“He’s been through some struggles in his career, even recently, and come out the other side probably even a better, more refined pitcher,” Boone said. “He is a little battle-tested with a lot of success. An All-Star reliever and has also fallen down when he’s gotten to the top.”

Williams added that he’s eager to share a bullpen with Bednar, as the two are already close from their days as Team USA catch partners during the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

“He’s an incredible pitcher,” Williams said. “He’s got wipeout stuff, and he’s having a great year.”

As for Doval, Williams is looking forward to watching the flamethrower in action.

“He throws 100 miles an hour,” Williams said. “What else do you need to see?”

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