The Yankees might be riding a hot start offensively, but they’re still fine-tuning the backend of their bullpen. With a few shaky performances recently and one key name suddenly available on the waiver wire, a swap could be on the horizon.
The Case for Scott Blewett
When the Baltimore Orioles designated 29-year-old righty Scott Blewett for assignment on Saturday, it opened the door for a savvy team like the Yankees to pounce.
Blewett, who quietly put together a stellar showing in 2023 with the Minnesota Twins, posted a 1.77 ERA over 20.1 innings last season. This year with Baltimore, he’s maintained that excellence, carrying a 1.00 ERA over nine innings while improving his strikeout numbers and logging a solid 48% ground-ball rate.
His arsenal is built around three pitches: a four-seam fastball, a slider, and a split-finger. The slider has been especially effective, averaging just 84.1 mph but holding opposing hitters to a .313 slugging percentage with a 43.3% whiff rate. The fastball, while not elite in velocity, plays up due to deception—he ranks in the 96th percentile in whiff percentage and the 88th percentile in chase rate.
His split-finger, which he throws only 20.9% of the time, might be his most underrated weapon. Opponents are hitting just .222 against it, with an identical .222 slugging rate. It’s clear Blewett is missing bats and inducing soft contact—two metrics the Yankees’ analytics department loves.
The Problem with Yoendrys Gomez
On the flip side, 25-year-old Yoendrys Gomez has been trending in the wrong direction.
While his 2.57 ERA over 7.0 innings might look decent on paper, the cracks have begun to show. He gave up a walk-off two-run homer to Jonathan Aranda of the Rays on Saturday, a gut punch that highlighted his limitations. Gomez doesn’t overpower hitters, doesn’t miss many bats, and his control has been spotty at best.
He’s averaging just 6.4 strikeouts per nine with a walk rate that continues to rise, making him a tough fit in high-leverage situations. For a bullpen that’s already had to patch together late innings after Devin Williams’ struggles, the Yankees may not be able to afford another low-strikeout arm with command issues.
The Swap That Makes Too Much Sense
This is where Blewett enters the picture as a natural upgrade. He fits the Yankees’ mold: he limits free passes, racks up whiffs, and has the kind of pitch metrics that suggest there’s even more room to grow with the right coaching tweaks.
Assuming he clears waivers down to New York, the Yankees should be ready to pounce and consider demoting Gomez to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. With Blewett’s splitter-slider combo, he could step in and contribute immediately, possibly even carving out a middle relief role.
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In a league where bullpen margins are razor-thin, one move like this could save a game—or several. And if there’s one thing we know about the Yankees, it’s that they’re not afraid to find value where others aren’t looking.