4 relievers the Yankees must prioritize as 2025 trade deadline targets

Despite being one of the best teams in baseball, the Yankees are expected to be aggressive at the trade deadline this year, with starting pitching and middle infield among the areas the Bronx Bombers have been showing an interest in strengthening. However, with DJ LeMahieu starting to play like himself and Jazz Chisholm returning from the IL, Brian Cashman could look to prioritize upgrading the bullpen rather than trading for an infielder.

Many Yankees fan would second this notion, with guys like Brent Headrick and Ian Hamilton struggling as of late. Even Jonathan Loaisiga, who was expected to slide into a high-leverage role after missing the better part of the last two seasons, has not quite looked like himself.

The Yankees do have some premier relievers like Mark Leiter Jr, Tim Hill, Devin Williams, Fernando Cruz, and the injured Luke Weaver, but adding another quality reliever or two could really help this team succeed down the stretch and protect from injury. These are four options I believe could succeed in pinstripes.

4 relievers who should be trade deadline fits for the Yankees in 2025

Aaron Bummer

Bummer, a 31-year-old lefty, has been one very few bright spots on a rather decrepit Atlanta Braves team - a team currently well under .500 and back of the division despite preseason World Series aspirations.

The veteran southpaw has posted an ERA of 2.73 across his first 26 innings of work, to go along with an even 30 strikeouts.

Bummer is a softer-tossing reliever in today's game, with his fastball sitting in the low 90s. He uses two fastball shapes, predominantly a sinker, to go along with a sweeping slider and a a heavy curveball.

The California native is similar to Tim Hill in a sense, inducing a lot of soft contact while keeping the ball on the ground. He also adds the strikeout element, as he misses a lot of bats with his breaking balls.

Aaron Boone would undoubtedly welcome a guy like Bummer, as his only available lefties out of the bullpen currently are Hill and Headrick, a Quad-A option who has endured significant struggles of late, victimized repeatedly by Rafael Devers.

The only snag in this proposed move for Bummer is his contract; the lefty is slated to earn $3.5 million this season and $9.5 million in 2026. With the Yankees outspoken about their desire to remain below the $300 million luxury tax, they may not be ready to commit almost $10 million to a bullpen arm for next season.

Regardless of the money, Bummer would be a great addition on the field. The Yankees are looking to be a World Series team once more, and snapping up one of the game's top southpaws would definitely help them gear up for a run in October.

Jake Bird

One pitcher who would cause no financial problems at all is right-hander Jake Bird, currently of the Colorado Rockies. His current contract is only worth $770,000 dollars, but he has been one of the best relievers in the game thus far.

His ERA currently sits at a ridiculous 1.49 through 27 games and 36.1 innings. His strikeout numbers have also surged, as he has fanned 45 batters thus far. Pretty ridiculous turnaround for a guy whose ERA was sitting around 4.50 for his first three seasons in the majors.

Featuring a 94 MPH sinker, mid-80s slider, and a low-80s curveball, Baseball Savant ranks Bird in the 99th percentile for breaking run value among all pitchers.

If he continues this dominance in the time leading up the deadline, many contenders are sure to be calling up the Rockies about Jake Bird. The Yankees will hopefully be among them, as they could use another pitcher with high-strikeout rates.

Unfortunately, even when at their worst, the Rockies have previously shown reluctance to give up their best players at the deadline. Hopefully, they change that habit, given the dire state of the current team, and the Yankees can nab Bird in exchange for a prospect or two.

Mason Fluharty

This one is optimistic. Mason Fluharty is a rookie left-handed pitcher currently with the Toronto Blue Jays, and he has been nothing short of a revelation so far in 2025. Still only 23 years old, Fluharty has an ERA of 3.58 to go along with 29 strikeouts in 28 appearances out of the pen.

Fluharty, who was drafted in the fifth round by Toronto back in 2022, utilizes only two pitches: A cutter and a sweeper. The huge difference in break between the 90 MPH cutter and the 80 MPH sweeper keeps hitters off-balance, inducing a lot of weak flyballs and popups.

It's unlikely that the Blue Jays would trade one of their brightest young arms to a division rival, especially when they currently occupy a Wild Card spot and are tied with the Rays for second place in the AL East. But, should they hit a skid in the coming weeks, who knows what could happen if the Yankees are willing to overpay? The Blue Jays are always active in some way shape or form at the deadline, but in what way remains to be seen this year.

Caleb Ferguson

This is weird. Caleb Ferguson spent a good chunk of last season in pinstripes and, for want of a better phrase, was quite terrible. He had a 5.13 ERA through 42 games with the Yankees and was eventually traded to the Astros in exchange for RHP Kelly Austin and cash considerations.

He was better in his 20 games with the Astros, posting an ERA of 3.86. Nothing amazing, but not horrible either.

He did enough in Houston for the Pirates to give him a one-year, $3 million dollar deal leading up to this season. He has revamped himself in Pittsburgh, raising his arm slot and pitching for more contact. This has resulted in a much-improved ERA of 3.18 in 30 games.

He was very fastball-heavy in his time with New York, but has started to mix his sinker, cutter, and slurve much more effectively. By doing so, he has limited hard contact, an issue he had last year.

This move might not sit well with some members of the fanbase at the start, but he could be a very effective low-leverage guy. He should also be on the block, as the Pirates are having a woeful year and are expected to sell at the deadline once more. Poor Paul Skenes.

None of these pitchers would come in and be high-leverage relievers, but there is a reason for that: The Yankees don't need more high-leverage relievers. The back end of the bullpen is actually very good, but when one of the starters has a bad outing, the mid-game guys (besides De Los Santos) are just not getting the job done. Such was evident in this weekend's series loss against the Red Sox, where the bullpen could not pick up Ryan Yarbrough or Carlos Rodón after their respective poor starts.

Aaron Boone needs to have more reliable options in the mid-game, and any one of the listed relievers could exponentially improve this Yankees bullpen.