5 Yankees who might have trouble keeping 40-man roster spot

4. Domingo German

Garcia’s role at the MLB level is unclear, though our best guess is he should be a starter. As for Domingo German, we thought that was his fate after a fairly impressive 2019. But then a domestic violence suspension kept him on the shelf in 2020. The Yankees inexplicably stuck by him throughout the entire troubling (and embarrassing) process, only to be rewarded with 22 games (18 starts), totaling 98.1 innings, and he was removed from the rotation after a last-minute dental procedure somehow sounded the alarms for manager Aaron Boone.

German’s best outing of the season came at the end of July when he had a no-hitter against the Red Sox heading into the eighth inning … and then Boston scored five runs in the bottom of the eighth to win 5-4. Did we mention he was also part of the pre-All-Star break meltdown in Houston?

German pitched in just one game between August and October because of a shoulder issue, and at this point we just don’t know why he’s worth $2.1 million to not really possess a role and not be particularly good at whatever the Yankees are asking him to do. If the goal is to have another arm on hand to eat innings and float between the rotation and bullpen, well, wouldn’t we rather give that to an up-and-coming prospect instead of a 29-year-old with a checkered past?

German isn’t awful, but the Yankees can do better, and once they realize that, it won’t be all that shocking if he’s sent packing. This team doesn’t need more position-less or role-less players who lack the necessary personality to play in New York.