The New York Yankees are watching their once-promising season teeter thanks to a bullpen that’s now stretched to its breaking point.
For a team with World Series dreams, the relief corps has become an alarming liability, leaking runs and lacking stability.
A brutal stretch saw the bullpen allow 15 earned runs across just 13 innings over the last four games—numbers that scream dysfunction.
Injuries have gutted the Yankees’ depth, turning once-reliable relievers into daily stopgaps and exposing the system’s lack of reinforcement.
Fernando Cruz Injury Puts More Pressure on Thin Relief Unit
Fernando Cruz going down with an oblique strain might’ve been the tipping point, both statistically and emotionally, for this group.
Cruz had quietly been one of the few trustworthy arms—his 3.00 ERA and high strikeout rate kept games under control.
Losing him means one fewer pitcher capable of bridging the gap between the starters and closer without blowing things up.
Manager Aaron Boone didn’t sugarcoat it: Cruz will be out “for a while,” and there’s no easy fix waiting in the wings.
Aaron Boone Takes Accountability, but Structural Issues Persist
In a moment of self-reflection, Boone admitted his bullpen management hasn’t always set pitchers up for success.
“Some of those guys have been leaned on heavily… I’ve got to do a better job,” Boone said, via Greg Joyce of The New York Post.
Aaron Boone on the bullpen, which has allowed 15 ER in 13 IP over last four games: “Some of those guys have been leaned on heavily. It’s on me, I got to do a better job of getting those guys in positions where they can be successful.”
— Greg Joyce (@GJoyce9) July 2, 2025
Boone’s comments are commendable, but they underscore a painful truth—this bullpen is being used like a short-staffed restaurant kitchen.
At some point, you can’t blame the chef when the pantry’s half-empty and the stove is flickering out.
Overused Relievers Are Breaking Down Under the Workload
Relievers like Mark Leiter Jr., Luke Weaver, and even Devin Williams are used a lot, sometimes every day for a specific stretch of games.
It’s no surprise the effectiveness of some of them has dipped. Everyone has a breaking point—these arms are simply reaching theirs faster than expected.
Leiter Jr. was on quite a run until a few days ago, but overuse has chipped away at his control and confidence in key moments and his ERA is now at 4.68.
Boone’s options are so limited, it’s like trying to win a poker hand with a two-seven offsuit nearly every game.
Front Office Needs to Step Up Before It’s Too Late
Boone deserves criticism, but the Yankees’ front office bears responsibility for the lack of viable depth options.
A contender shouldn’t rely this heavily on fringe relievers or patchwork solutions when injuries hit—there has to be a plan.
At the very least, New York needs to acquire a dependable lefty, and possibly even a high-leverage right-hander, before the deadline.
This bullpen isn’t built to survive a playoff series, much less the grind of August and September without reinforcements.
Championship Goals Crashing Against a Bullpen Wall
The Yankees remain very much in the hunt, but their bullpen is currently a sinking ship bailing water with a coffee cup.
It’s a painful irony—on most nights, the rotation does enough but the bullpen undoes it all.
A team with championship DNA simply can’t afford to trot out relievers who are gassed, mismatched, or both.
If the Yankees want to avoid a historic collapse, the time to act is now—before another lead, and another arm, slips away.
READ MORE: Where the Yankees have fallen short of their defensive goals in 2025
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