The Yankees lose two notable bullpens before the regular season

The Yankees will have to test their excellent bullpen depth immediately. It was announced that Lou Trevino would start the season at IL as he dealt with an elbow ligament strain. He joins Tommy Cannell, who is closed next week due to throwing, as he nurses his biceps for tendonitis. Needless to say, it’s not an ideal start to the season for the Yankees. However, this is not the end of the world, as there are some quality options they can deploy to mitigate their losses.

Trevino was an unprecedented force last season with the Yankees:

The Yankees acquired last-ditch Lou Trivino as part of the Frankie Montas deal, and the former closer was about as strong as he got when he shot into pinstripe lines. He did his job and did his job well, and losing him would be a bigger blow than many would think. In 21.2 innings pitched with the Yanks, he posted a 1.66 ERA and 3.34 FIP. He also put up a minuscule 5.6% HR/FB%, even if the K% and BB% went the wrong way.

He’s had fewer ups and downs when he came around, but that shouldn’t be a sign of concern. He just decided to resort more to soft, earthy contact rather than trying to get everything blown up by heavy hitters. He caused soft contact on 22.0% of balls batted, which was a significant increase from the 12.5% ​​he scored with Oakland. Trivino has been close to dominating with New York, and it will be hard to see who will replace his productivity in the bullpen.

Kahnle was the reunion we deserved, but now it’s a waiting game:

As for Tommy Kanle, it’s a shame he’s already been banned from pitching, as he has yet to appear or pitch for a session with the team. The Yankees decided to bring Kahnle back on a two-year deal, despite the fact that he’s only thrown 13.2 innings since 2020. I’m a huge Kahnle fan, and I think he brings a lot to the table, not only on the field but out of that as well, however, I’m not so sure than if it was the best move in hindsight.

If Kahnle is healthy, he’s still a great reliever. He’s made a dominant change that he uses more than 3/4 of the time when he comes into the game. This is key, however, when he’s healthy. It’s been a while since he’s been able to deliver a full season, and this year looks like it’s no different. Kahnle was one of the key players returning to the Bronx in 2017, and David Robertson and Todd Frazier were the other two who also came to the Bronx.

Kahnle’s reunion was what seemed like a great opportunity to snag a low-buy candidate and let him cook with the boys, but if he had to deal with biceps tendinitis which is a recurring problem – similar to 2018 – it would be a miss of the signature. I’d like to hold out hope for Kahnle, but it’s already looking bleak, even though the season hasn’t even started yet, so he has plenty of time to right the ship and recover before the important games start.

Some potential choices could have a bigger impact now:

Fortunately, the Yankees have a bunch of guns they may decide to throw in there, with guys like Greg Weissert, Albert Abreu, and lefty Matt Krook now standing a better chance of breaking camp as part of the 26-man roster. I wouldn’t be surprised if Kroc gets one of the spots, since the Yanks have none other than Andy Peralta as their only left-hander in the pen. Krook has a dominant slide and solid dunks to pair with it, and in 5.0 rounds this spring he looked almost insurmountable.

As for Weissert and Abreu, I can see one of them potentially getting a spot, especially if Rodon is going to miss the first month or so of the season. It likely meant that both the German and Schmidt entered the rotation as fourth and fifth starters, which is less than ideal but certainly manageable. The season hasn’t even started yet, so it’s not time to sound the alarms just yet, but it’s definitely not been off to a hot start.

The next few weeks of spring are going to be huge for a few guys, and I can see a few others potentially showing up and throwing their names in the ring. One guy I’ve been in love with so far, that’s an under-the-radar option, is Ian Hamilton. He threw 3.0 innings in the spring, surrendering two base hits and hitting triples to go along with it. He has a great cutter and could be a name for camp break watch. Hopefully the Yanks can deal with the injury error early on.