Reports of teams trying to convert relievers into starters have flown wild, with former Yankees’ closer Clay Holmes garnering interest as a starting pitcher from teams like the New York Mets. While it may not be wise to bring back Holmes to pitch as a starter, there’s another reliever looking to convert from a bullpen role to a starting role who could be the perfect flier for the Yankees to take. Jeff Hoffman, who has dominated out of the bullpen for the Phillies over the last two seasons, could be the next reliever-turned-starter success story, and the Bronx Bombers should be interested.
With the starting pitching market immediately showing that teams will have a hard time finding cost-controlled pitching, Hoffman presents a potential heist who at the very least could transition back into his dominant reliever role.
Why Jeff Hoffman Could Be the Perfect Starter For the Yankees to Sign
Michael King is the Yankees’ most recent reliever-turned-starter success, as the team moved him into the rotation late in the 2023 season and eventually flipped him for Juan Soto. Just like Hoffman, King was a failed starter who blossomed in a reliever role, so why did the Bronx Bombers bother to shake things up and move him back to the rotation? As a reliever, King learned his sweeping slider and relied more on his riding four-seamer, altering the way he would pitch forever.
From a command-first groundball artist to a strikeout machine, King revolutionized his arsenal and was a completely different pitcher as a reliever than he was as a starter. The Yankees correctly identified that his pitch mix had reached a point where it could shine as a starter pitching deep into games, and that helped them land Juan Soto and helped the Padres find a top-of-the-rotation arm.
Just like King, you can tie Jeff Hoffman’s success as a reliever to the development of a new slider, ditching his sweeper for a gyro slider and never looking back. Not only was this sharper slider grading out better in Stuff+ models, but it became such a reliable pitch that Hoffman used it more than any other pitch this past season. This new pitch makes him a completely different pitcher than the one we saw in Colorado and Cincinnati, similar to how the sweeper made King a new man in the Bronx.
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Adding a new shiny toy to your repertoire as a reliever isn’t enough though; Michael King had two fastballs and an excellent changeup that played a massive role in his ability to return to the rotation. Most relievers will adjust their primary breaking ball and do little else as they remain one or two-inning weapons, but Jeff Hoffman didn’t just stop at fixing up his slider.
With the addition of a sinker as well, Jeff Hoffman successfully added a fourth plus pitch to his repertoire, as it has elite horizontal movement and graded out well with a 112 Stuff+. Batters had a .277 xwOBA and +3 Run Value against that pitch in its limited action this season and it could be a real weapon for him that compliments the other pitches in his arsenal extremely well.
Hoffman possesses an excellent four-seamer with good vertical life, tons of horizontal run, and mid-90s velocity that can be downright unhittable up in the zone. It pairs well with his splitter which has nearly 13 inches of vertical separation off of it with good lateral movement, allowing it to work against right-handed or left-handed batters. Hoffman’s mix is varied, but he doesn’t have to limit any one pitch to a specific handedness or matchup.
With wide release points and good extension to go with having a deep arsenal, Jeff Hoffman strikes me as someone who figured out the keys to being a successful starter in his time as a reliever.
Throwing four good pitches with distinct movement profiles is something few starting pitchers can do, and yet Jeff Hoffman figured it out as a reliever. Considering that he hasn’t thrown 100 IP in a Major League season ever, the Yankees would be taking a risk in terms of how often he could go deep into games, but it’s one worth taking. Hoffman likely won’t command the kind of money we’ve seen thrown around to guys like Yusei Kikuchi ($63 million) and could sign a deal closer to what we saw other relievers turned starters get.
Jordan Hicks signed a four-year $44 million contract and Reynaldo Lopez signed a three-year $30 million deal, who is to say that Jeff Hoffman wouldn’t get money in the same ballpark as those two? Even if he flops as a starter and has to become a reliever again, this is still one of the best bullpen arms in the sport and would certainly be worth around $11 million per year.
If the Yankees signed Hoffman, perhaps it allows them to trade someone like Nestor Cortes who would be a cost-effective option for teams unwilling to pay what the market is demanding for a rotation arm. They could get a bat or potentially restock their farm system a little and try to flip other prospects in a deal to improve the roster elsewhere. Regardless, Jeff Hoffman has a chance to become a legitimate starter, proving to be a steal on the market for a lucky contender.
Most would look at the success Hoffman has had in the bullpen to say he should remain a reliever, but the Yankees should view his improvements as a reason to take a flier on him as a starter.