Yankees: Who can internally fill the remaining bullpen openings?

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The Yankees added two elite arms to their bullpen this offseason in Zach Britton and Adam Ottavino. Both relievers signed three-year deals (Britton’s could be four) to add to what was already a “super ‘pen.” However, there is still one remaining question: who fills the remaining spot(s) in the bullpen?

The Yankees already had a strong back-end of the bullpen with Aroldis Chapman, Dellin Betances, Chad Green, and Jonathan Holder. However, adding Zach Britton and Adam Ottavino give them the best bullpen in all of Major League Baseball. No argument needed.

Re-signing Britton provides the Yankees with a dominant late-inning lefty who can get hitters out from both sides of the plate, while Ottavino and his high-octane fastball and knee-buckling slider replaces David Robertson, who departed for the Philadelphia Phillies.

Although the Yankees have six men locked down in their bullpen already, there are still currently one-to-two vacancies remaining. Brian Cashman could easily spend big bucks and add another mid-level reliever to the ‘pen, but the organization has enough talented arms in their system to fill those voids.

Without further ado, below are a few names that the Yankees could look to fill those remaining spots.

The most obvious and experienced of the bunch, Tommy Kahnle is certainly looking to turn the page after a disappointing 2018 season. In only 24 appearances, the righty threw for a 6.56 ERA and 22 runs (17 earned) in 23.1 innings pitched.

Kahnle was expected to be a late-inning option for Aaron Boone this past season, especially after his outstanding 2017 campaign between the Chicago White Sox and Yankees. The righty had pitched to a 2.59 ERA and racked up a career-high 96 strikeouts in 62.2 innings pitched.

After being placed on the disabled list on April 17 with right shoulder tendinitis this past season, the 29-year had trouble finding steady success between the Majors and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Besides the shoulder issues, another possible contributor to Kahnle’s down year was his decreased velocity.

Kahnle’s fastball – arguably the best pitch in his arsenal– dramatically decreased in velocity from 2017 into 2018. Between these past two seasons, his velocity dropped almost 3.0 mph. Although that may seem minimal, that’s a HUGE difference for someone who relies primarily on his fastball. Check out the numbers :

Average Fastball Velocity:

2017: 97.9 mph

2018: 95.1 mph

The likely reason for this diminished velocity was his shoulder not being fully healed. As a result, the righty also suffered lower velocity with his changeup and slider, both reliable secondary pitches.

When a pitcher suffers a loss in velocity like Kahnle, their arsenal may lack its usual movement. Based on career percentages, Kahnle threw fewer fastballs (53.4 %) and more changeups (40.3 %) this past season, which could have given the batter an advantage in pitch recognition. If a changeup doesn’t have it’s usual bite or dip, it could remain flat with minimal movement like a fastball.

All the Yankees could hope for going into Spring Training is that Kahnle’s shoulder is fulled healed from his past shoulder issues and he regains his normal velocity. He could be a real lights-out option in the bullpen if he can replicate his 2017 performance.

CLEVELAND, OH – JULY 13: Domingo German #65 of the New York Yankees pitches against the Cleveland Indians during the first inning at Progressive Field on July 13, 2018 in Cleveland, Ohio. The Indians defeated the Yankees 6-5. (Photo by David Maxwell/Getty Images) /

Luis Cessa and Domingo German are bunched together for only one reason: either one could serve as the long-man in the bullpen. It would be very surprising if both were in the majors together given their current roles within the organization. The logical approach is one serving as the long-man with the big league club, while the other is starting in Triple-A.

The Yankees have other options to serve in this role, such as Chance Adams and Jonathan Loaisiga, but both could use some more development in Scranton.

Cessa made 16 appearances for the Yankees in 2018, starting in five of those contests. Overall, he compiled a 5.24 ERA with a 3.00 K/BB ratio in only 44.2 innings pitched. As a starter, he went 1-4 with a 6.50 ERA in 18.0 IP with a 1.86 K/BB %. In relief, his numbers weren’t as bad with a 4.39 ERA in 26.2 IP with a 4.33 K/BB % The one major difference between the splits was Cessa’s strikeout-to-walk ratio. However, this is way too small of a sample size to make an argument that he should remain a starter.

Personally, the Yankees should give Cessa the “Chad Green” treatment and convert him into a full-time reliever. Starting clearly hasn’t gone as planned for either Cessa or the Yankees during his four years with the organization. But if you let Cessa air-out fastballs along with his secondary pitches for an inning or two, we might have something there. It’s worth a shot.

German, on the other hand, has the pure stuff to remain a starter. Although his numbers from this past season weren’t spectacular by any means, the 26-year old righty made some big starts for the Yankees when they were in need of arms. You have to remember, German miss a significant amount of development time after undergoing Tommy John Surgery on his right elbow in 2015.

In 21 games (14 games started), German went 2-6 with a 5.57 ERA. In 85.2 innings pitched, the righty allowed 33 walks and struck out 102 batters. In order for German to solidify himself on the Major League roster, he must improve his walk rate.

Although his numbers weren’t earth-shattering by any means, having a full year under his belt in the big leagues could pay dividends for German. The high-strikeout numbers in limited action prove just that.

NEW YORK, NEW YORK – OCTOBER 08: Stephen Tarpley #71 of the New York Yankees throws a pitch against the Boston Red Sox during the eighth inning in Game Three of the American League Division Series at Yankee Stadium on October 08, 2018 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /

Stephen Tarpley is a dark-horse candidate to start the 2019 season in the Bronx. The 25-year old left-hander got a cup of coffee in the big leagues at the tail-end of the 2018 campaign, getting the call-up on September 1, 2018.

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Having spent most of the season between Double-A and Triple-A, the young lefty certainly made the most out of the opportunity, as he made the Yankees roster for the 2018 ALDS against the Boston Red Sox. In 9.0 innings pitched Tarpley collected a 3.00 ERA and allowed six hits, six walks, and three runs (all earned) while fanning 13 batters. No doubt a small sample size, but certainly impressive after making his debut throughout a playoff race.

What’s going to keep Tarpley from riding the Scranton Shuttle and keep a spot on the 25-man roster is getting out hitters from both sides of the plate, not just lefties. Left-handed specialists are simply becoming extinct from Major League bullpens.

These were Tarpley’s splits between lefties and righties from both the Minors and Majors 2018:

RH Hitters: 202 PA, 33 H, 24 BB, 49 K,

LH Hitters: 115 PA, 14 H, 8 BB, 35 K

Tarpley’s numbers are better against lefties based on the number of hits and walks allowed. However, splits are difficult really dissect because game leverage isn’t put into the equation, hence allowed runs are almost irrelevant.

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Regardless, Tarpley must improve against right-handed hitters to cement himself a spot in the Yankees pen. The lefty really emerged as a potential bullpen candidate this past season. Let’s see if Tarpley can build on that momentum heading into the 2019 campaign.

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