The Yankees’ bullpen ranks among the top five in baseball every year, but management continues to look to add pieces. The team was in contact with Houston Astros reliever Hector Neris on Saturday, and MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand said there are “advantages.”Neris is coming off a great season with the Astros and would certainly strengthen the Yankees. However, they have inner skills that are very valuable. In fact, if the Yankees finally get a healthy version of Jonathan Loais, the unit could be maxed out.Loaisiga is not rated by many based on his injury history, but when he is healthy and takes his game to the top, there are not many hands that can beat his level of production.He pitched just 17.2 innings this season with a 3.06 ERA, 70.4% on-base percentage and 53.3% ground ball rate. Loaisiga is a heavy groundball producer and makes weak contact, but is not known for his strikeout numbers. His best season came back in 2021 when he posted a 2.17 ERA and 70.2 innings pitched.Fortunately his speed didn’t drop that much. In fact, it hovers around 98 mph, which matches his best year as a professional.The Yankees need a big year with Loaisfrom injuries, but a one-year, $2.5 million contract to avoid arbitration gives the Yankees a high-level arm with the ability to make a positive contribution.Loaisiga includes dimple, curve ball and shift combination. His sinker produced a .224 batting average last season, but there is something special about his curve, allowing no more than five hits. Sure, the sample size is small, but he has a bad pitch combination and can be used in high leverage situations when healthy..
On paper, the Yankees bullpen has a ton of exciting arms, including Clay Holmes, Ian Hamilton, the return of Scott Effross, Loaisiga, and many more. Adding Neris to the equation would be exciting, especially since the starting rotation has a few questions and injury concerns.
Of course, fans are always looking for improvements to bolster the team’s upside, but the Yankees’ bullpen might be the best in baseball, it is just a matter of maximizing potential.