3 Yankees players who’ll be gone by the All-Star break

2. Lucas Luetge

Lucas Luetge grew up a childhood Yankee fan. He was devastating in spring training, blowing people away with his trademark breaker. We’re so glad he finished off his MLB comeback with the team he rooted for as a kid, and we’re glad it’s lasted several weeks.

Thus far during the regular season, though, Luetge hasn’t been quite as dominant, ranking as one of the very few relievers on the roster who’ve been blemished … well, at all, really.

Through Tuesday’s action, Luetge has struck out nine in 6.1 innings, right in line with his preseason performance. However, he’s also been tagged for three homers and five earned runs, at least one in every outing (including a three-inning stint in Tampa on Friday that really didn’t seem like an ideal use for his services).

All emotions removed, this is a number’s game. While Luetge has shown the ability to be a big-league mop-up man, the Yankees would much rather that role be occupied by someone who can be sent freely up and down to Triple-A. There are innings limits on everybody this year, and the Yanks need flexibility anywhere they can find it. The very second they make a roster decision on Luetge, his time with the organization has evaporated — unless he clears waivers and chooses to return to Scranton, which is a possibility.

Bottom line, he hasn’t shown enough to justify being kept afloat over a replacement arm. It’s a shame.