According to Jorge Castillo of ESPN, the New York Yankees have agreed to a one-year deal with RHP Jonathan Loaisiga, who missed most of the 2024 season after undergoing elbow surgery. The right-hander made just three appearances last season, not allowing a single run in those appearances, but the problem has never been performance for Loaisiga, but rather the lack of innings. He’s appeared in just 20 games over the past two seasons, but his excellent sinker paired with a dominant changeup and curveball make him a high-upside arm with little to no risk.
In this one-year deal, the Yankees attached a club option they can pick up for the 2026 season, and it’s expected that Loaisiga will return in late April to make his season debut.
Jonathan Loaisiga Returns to the Yankees On Low-Cost Deal
When Jonathan Loaisiga is on the mound, he’s one of the best relievers in the game, but the problem has been consistently getting innings out of him. Since 2021 he has a 2.89 ERA with a 59.2% groundball rate, sporting a truly dominant sinker that sits in the upper-90s with two-plane movement that makes it a buzzsaw weapon against right-handed batters and even left-handed batters.
The problem is that over that four-year window, Loaisiga has thrown just 140.1 innings, and the Yankees haven’t been able to get the consistently dominant production they saw from him in 2021. His stuff still remains immaculate, last season he was averaging 97.9 MPH on his sinker with over 18 inches of horizontal movement, and his secondaries still had their sharp break with high velocity.
After the Yankees lost Clay Holmes to the New York Mets, the team’s bullpen depth took a hit, and they’re still awaiting news on whether they’re going to be able to retain Tim Hill or Tommy Kahnle.
The Yankees have shown interest in various bullpen upgrades including the likes of Tanner Scott and Devin Williams, who are two of the best relievers who could change teams this offseason. After signing Max Fried to an eight-year $218 million deal, the team could try and acquire their offensive upgrades through the trade market and use free agency to secure low-cost bullpen help.
Brian Cashman and Aaron Boone did not commit to keeping Luke Weaver in the closer role either, leaving the window open for a potential addition to move the right-hander back to a set-up man role. The Yankees aren’t done adding bullpen help, and they seem to be shopping for high-profile hitters as well with Cody Bellinger and Kyle Tucker being on their radar.