Yankees: Best free agent signings of the past decade

3. Andrew Miller

The Yankees signing Andrew Miller was a masterstroke for many reasons.

We’re not sure how the Yankees enticed Andrew Miller to come join them after his dominant postseason stint with the Orioles in 2014 (Hint: Money!), but he’ll go down as one of the more beloved 1.5-year Yanks ever.

Miller went from Boston to Baltimore at the ’14 deadline (in exchange for Eduardo Rodriguez!), before joining the Yankees on a four-year, $36 million deal in total. He emerged as the closer in 2015 with a devastating lefty whip, whiffing 100 in 61.2 innings, and bringing with him one of the best entrance songs in modern history, Johnny Cash’s pained warbles in “God’s Gonna Cut You Down”. We will absolutely, positively never forget his epic game-ending battle with Troy Tulowitzki, back when those words really meant something.

By 2016, Miller had relented the stopper role to Aroldis Chapman, but he posted better numbers than ever before, whiffing 77 in 45.1 innings with a 1.45 mark. With the team going nowhere, and with 2.5 years of control remaining on his deal, Miller went to Cleveland in a 1-for-4 deal, with Justus Sheffield and CLINT heading to the Boogie Down.

Sheffield has since headed to Seattle, bringing James Paxton back in exchange. Frazier could still be a major piece of New York’s future (or, at least, their present). Miller was even kind enough to lose Game 3 of the 2017 ALDS to the Yanks during an otherwise-dominant Tribe tenure.

Overall, it’s hard to imagine a more perfect ringless short-term signing. Miller simply wouldn’t stop delivering.