5 relievers on DFA watch Yankees could claim in August (instead of Paul Sewald)

Thanks to a baffling performance by Brian Cashman at the 2026 trade deadline, the New York Yankees still have unfilled needs as August wears on. In particular, the bullpen did not receive the reinforcements it needed, and danger is lurking.

This is the time of year when the teams that realize that they have no hope of contending cut bait with veterans in order to give young players a look and turn the page towards the future. At the same time, contenders might be forced to lose useful pieces as more impactful players return from the IL. Relievers on the fringes are typically the ones most impacted by this, so the Yankees are almost assuredly going to make a play on someone who shakes loose.

In fact, they almost already did. It's been reported that the Yankees strongly considered signing former Arizona Diamondbacks closer Paul Sewald, but decided to pass on the struggling righty and allowed him to sign with the Toronto Blue Jays instead.

There will be more appealing arms to shake free; here are a few who might hit the waiver wire and be of interest to New York.

Five relievers on DFA watch that the Yankees could snatch up

Evan Phillips - RHP Los Angeles Dodgers

Evan Phillips was a big developmental win for the Dodgers when they claimed him off waivers in 2021. Los Angeles decided to keep him around even after he underwent Tommy John surgery, and he finally made his comeback in early July. He's thrown 11 innings so far and given up four homers.

He could be on the chopping block, as the Dodgers have a plethora of arms and will have more coming off the IL soon. In fact, they've just called up Landon Knack, meaning that by the time you read this, Phillips could already be on the market. He's struggled to knock off the rust, but the talent is still there, so he could be worth a flier.

Andrew Kittredge - RHP Baltimore Orioles

During last season's debacle, the Orioles traded away Andrew Kittredge to the Chicago Cubs. They subsequently reacquired him from the Cubs over the winter. Kittredge has been a solid arm from the right side for several years now, and while his strikeouts have dipped from a career-best 30.8% rate last year to 19.2% this season, he's still getting outs pretty consistently.

While Baltimore didn't move him at this year's trade deadline, if they slip further in the wild card chase, they could follow up on the Adley Rutschman trade and embrace a youth movement, potentially cutting ties with Kittredge in the process.

Sam Moll - LHP Cincinnati Reds

Since May 31, Tim Hill has a 6.08 ERA and has surrendered eight homers over 23 2/3 innings, as 32% of fly balls he's allowed have flown over the fence. Finding another solution to get out lefties and fill those middle innings could be key.

The Cincinnati Reds were thought to be one of the most obvious sellers at the trade deadline, but ended up doing very little. As they come to terms with their fate, they should let go of some veterans in favor of younger players. One such player could be lefty reliever Sam Moll. He's had his own struggles in the middle of the season, but he's kept lefties to a .215 average this season and owns a .193 average against lefty bats for his career.

JT Brubaker - RHP San Francisco Giants

Former Yankee alert! JT Brubaker didn't get much run in the Bronx, but while he was here, he did a decent job keeping runs off the board. It wasn't always pretty, but at the end of the day, keeping the other team from scoring is the goal. Things have been mostly the same for the 32-year-old in San Francisco. He doesn't strike out many batters, and he walks more than you'd like, but he's still doing a relatively solid job of limiting walks. San Francisco is going nowhere, so he could get booted for a younger option.

Cole Winn - RHP Texas Rangers

Ask any Texas Rangers fan, and they'll tell you they've been waiting for the day Cole Winn gets DFA'd all season. The righty has really struggled with an ERA hovering around 6.00 all year. Rangers fans might finally get their wish, as Jakob Junis and Jack Leiter are working their way back from the IL.

While all of that doesn't sound like a ringing endorsement, Winn posted a 1.51 ERA over 41 2/3 innings in 2025. He has a live arm with mid-90s heat and is just 26 years old. He could be an interesting project for Matt Blake, though if the Yankees were to give him a shot, they'd need a quick turnaround.

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