The Tuesday Discussion: The Bullpen

May 5, 2026

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This week we asked our writers the following:

The Yankees are playing great baseball, but one area of concern is the bullpen.  How would you quickly address that problem?  Would you make a trade?  Would you call-up a pitcher from Triple-A? Would you move a current starter to the pen?  Is there another solution?

Here are their replies...

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Ed Botti - I don’t really have a “concern” at this point with the Bullpen. It certainly can be improved upon, and I would look to do so at some point.

But at this stage of the season if I had to make some moves, and having a 23-11 record, I am not making a trade for a reliever unless blown away by an offer. I will fill any holes from within the system, first.

When the first one of Cole or Rodon comes back, Ryan Weathers moves to my pen, and I send Elmer down. When the other one is ready, depending on the schedule in front for the next 10 games or so, either Bird or Doval are sent down or moved.

Going forward, Lagrange is next on my depth chart heading into June/July baseball. On deck next would be a look at prospects Yovanny Cruz and/or Ben Grable.

At the deadline, I just may be in the market for a closer and move Bednar down to main set up.

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Andy Singer - The best way to improve the bullpen quickly is to utilize current big league rotation arms once Rodon and Cole return. Weather's and Rodriguez could be excellent multi-inning weapons out of the bullpen, replacing Bird and Blackburn. By the end of July, I expect the Yankees to make a deal for outside help and add Lagrange to the mix.

While the bullpen is of some concern now, I think there are fairly clear solutions coming in both the short and long-term.

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Derek McAdam - I think the best move is to wait and see what happens once Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon returns. At least one pitcher will make the move to the bullpen, and I wouldn’t be surprised if Luis Gil is brought back up at some point as an arm in the bullpen. That may be a better fit for him at this current moment. 

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Note: Cary Greene has an in-depth answer that will be an article of its own later this week.