Yankees: David Hale released

The New York Yankees have released David Hale after re-signing him to a minor league contract over the offseason.

David Hale is no stranger to the transaction wire. Ever since he first joined the Yankees organization in early 2018 he has bounced back-and-forth between the major leagues and Triple-A. It’s an unfortunate byproduct of living on the edge of the roster.

Hale returned to the Yankees on a minor league contract in early February that included an invitation to Spring Training. He was released — presumably before MLB instituted their league-wide roster freeze — in late March, according to Chris Hillburn-Trenkle of Baseball America in their latest minor league transactions roundup.

Hillburn-Trenkle also notes a handful of minor league assignments in the roundup, but most were already known. Ben Heller, Michael King, Nick Nelson, Brooks Kriske, and Thairo Estrada were all assigned to Triple-A. Miguel Yajure, Albert Abreu, Deivi Garcia, and Estevan Florial were assigned to Double-A. Luis Gil and Luis Medina to High-A.

These assignments don’t necessarily mean that is where each player will begin the season.

Hale made 20 appearances for New York this past season out of the bullpen, totaling 37.2 innings pitched. He pitched well in those appearances, too, posting a 3.11 ERA and 1.221 WHIP before a back injury put him on the injured list and ended his season in late July.

It is unclear what led the Yankees to the decision to release Hale. He had made four appearances in Spring Training games before they were canceled, with mixed results. There have been no indications that his injury (termed a lumbar spine strain) had become an issue again.

For now, at least, Hale will be a free agent. Once teams are allowed to make roster moves again it won’t be a surprise to see someone (perhaps the Yankees?) sign him to another minor league contract.