Yankees promote Ben Heller; send down Domingo German

Part of last year’s Andrew Miller mega deal, Ben Heller gets his first shot with the Yankees in 2017, as he’ll replace Domingo German on the 25-man roster.

Because the Yankees ultimately decided to push Masahiro Tanaka back a day in the rotation, the club was forced to call up right-hander Domingo German from Triple-A — knowing that Sunday’s starter Chad Green wouldn’t toss more than a few frames.

German, who threw 36 pitches (21 for strikes) in 2.2 innings — allowed only two hits, one walk and struck out one batter, before being immediately sent back to Triple-A Scranton/Wikes-Barre to continue his development from reliever to starter, following the Yankees’ 14-3 win.

In his place, the club recalled 25-year-old Ben Heller who had a cup of coffee with the club last season, following his arrival from the Indians as part of the Andrew Miller blockbuster.

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Heller, the 30th ranked Yankees prospect, according to FanGraphs has looked stellar at times this season for the Triple-A RailRiders.

In 27.2 innings pitched, Heller has a 2.60 ERA, 1.05 WHIP — and has held the opposition to a .185 BA while racking up an impressive 35:11 K:BB ratio.

Down at Scranton, Heller has worked on gaining better command over his 93-97 mph fastball. He’s also used a better variety of his above average 80-84 mph slider, go-to cutter and emerging changeup to keep batters consistently off-balance.

How long the club keeps him at the big league level will be predicated by the results he shows on the field — as he’ll need to improve upon last season’s 6.43 ERA and 11 hits allowed in only seven innings pitched.

Next: Will pushing Tanaka back actually help?

The Yankees’ bullpen ranks as the third best-relieving corp in baseball’s this season, combining for a 2.92 ERA in 188.1 innings pitched — 14 saves, a 201:73 K:BB ratio and a .197 opponent batting average.