Ryan Yarbrough re-joined the Yankees yesterday after missing over two months of the 2025 regular season due to an oblique strain.
The left-hander had once been a beam of hope for the rotation, replacing an ailing Marcus Stroman who hit the IL with a knee sprain and pushing Carlos Carrasco out of the rotation.
He posted a 3.83 ERA in eight starts with the Yankees, but the team will move him back to his bullpen role as they begin a crucial 12-game stretch beginning in Houston.
Yarbrough doesn’t have overpowering velocity, but his crafty repertoire and deep pitch mix could provide the Yankees with some much-needed depth in a bullpen that’s starting to figure things out.
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Why Ryan Yarbrough Could Provide Serious Value to the Yankees
The Yankees brought in Ryan Yarbrough on a cheap $2 million deal for 2025, and the left-hander initially served a reliever on the staff.
One blow-up outing against the Diamondbacks on April 3rd was the reason for four of the seven runs allowed in relief, as the left-hander struck out 24.6% of batters faced with a 2.4% Barrel% allowed.
Home runs are an issue for Yarbrough due to how easy it is to pull his slower pitches in the air for damage contact, but in a reliever role some of those issues could be mitigated.
Rather than pitching through a lineup multiple times, Yarbrough could worry about the three hitters he’s slated to face, relying on his best stuff instead of worrying about not showing his entire repertoire first time through the order.
Ryan Yarbrough is particularly effective against left-handed batters, holding them to a sub-.600 OPS with a 19.4% K-BB% in 2025, but he finally has a pitch to counter righties.
Ryan Yarbrough, Nasty 77mph Changeup. 👌 pic.twitter.com/0rPM9Ord02
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) June 1, 2025
A refined changeup has helped Yarbrough miss more bats against righties, adding both more depth and arm-side run as a result of alterations in seam orientation.
It’s almost exclusively a weapon against righties, holding them to a .349 SLG% and a .336 Expected SLG% while generating a 44.3% Whiff%.
In a starting role, throwing the changeup over and over again could cause hitters to adapt and start laying off of anything below the zone, but in a reliever role you’d likely only face a hitter once in a game.
This could allow Ryan Yarbrough to increase the usage of his changeup without worrying about hitters making the in-game adjustment to that pitch.
I also believe the Yankees gain value from having an arm angle and pitch profile that is vastly different from everyone else in the bullpen.
New York’s ability to throw a variety of arm angles and pitch profiles at an opposing lineup could make them dangerous in a playoff setting, and Ryan Yarbrough adds to that.
The closest “look” to Yarbrough in the bullpen is fellow southpaw Tim Hill, but these two veteran lefties have a 34-degree gap in arm angle.
Furthermore, while Hill is an extreme sinkerballer, Yarbrough primarily throws a cutter, sporting a changeup and sweeper as well that create a distinct look.
Aaron Boone now has two lefties who can get big outs against same-handed hitters, and while Yarbrough may not be a top-flight reliever, his multi-inning capabilities and solid work in a variety of roles make him a welcome addition.