Yankees: Adam Ottavino would be an ideal replacement for David Robertson

Saturday night great news was reported that Zach Britton re-signed with the Yankees on a three year deal with a club option for a fourth. Now with Britton back in the Bronx, the Yanks should solidify their bullpen as the best in baseball by signing Adam Ottavino.

Before getting into any stats it should be mentioned how perfect Ottavino would be in ringing in a new era of the Evil Empire. Not too long ago he said he could strike out Babe Ruth.

“I would strike Babe Ruth out every time. I’m not trying to disrespect him, you know, rest in peace, you know, shout out to Babe Ruth. But, it was a different game, I mean the guy ate hot dogs and drank beer and did whatever he did. It was just a different game.”

At this point, the Yankees just aren’t going to get any love so they might as well go full-on heel and finish off the winter with guys who exude villainous swagger like they’re Ric Flair. It’s only fitting. You get Manny Machado and you get Ottavino and you give the comments section of every MLB page something better to whine about.

If Ottavino is anything like he was last year then he would be an outstanding replacement for David Robertson in the same setup role he used to fill.

Adam Ottavino in 2018: 2.43 ERA, 77.2 IP, 112 k’s, 36 BB, 0.9991 WHIP, 13.0 K’s/9

David Robertson in 2018: 3.43 ERA, 69.2 IP, 91 k’s, 26 BB, 1.033 WHIP, 11.8 K’s/9

If the Yankees are interested in bringing in a guy like Ottavino he could thrive coming into jams to pick up a big strikeout. If the starter leaves men on and there are less then 2 outs and you got a runner on third, you need the strikeout and Ottavino can deliver that just like D-Rob used to.

On top of his high 13 K’s per 9, he also was tied for the most holds in the league with 34. (The other was Arizona’s, Archie Bradley). More often then not if you got a lead intact, he kept it that way. Give me that in the playoffs 100% of the time.

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While it is sad the David Robertson era is over, there’s nothing the Yankees can do about it other than fill his hole sweetly. They lost a very good reliever and in order to keep the balance of the bullpen strong, they need to replace him with another good reliever. This is why you spend a few bucks and get this guy. If anything, they would’ve spent a few bucks on Robertson anyway.

I have a great feeling guy like Stephen Tarpley and Domingo German will have good years out of the pen but the Yankees need a guarantee. Those guys are not a guarantee. Too many times in 2018 we saw AJ Cole, Luis Cessa and German filling in as poor band-aids for hurt players and Sonny Gray.

That can’t be anymore. That’s how a good Yankee team ends up 8-games behind the Boston Red Sox. The Yankees need to get Adam Ottavino to avoid any more band-aid situations.

We like championships right? It’s time the Yankees get what they pay for.