Favorite for Yankees' final Opening Day bullpen spot becoming painfully obvious

The roster battle rages on, with plenty of crunches and injuries still en route one month before Yankees Opening Day. But after one week of action it seems fairly clear which previously unheralded name has risen to the top of the Yankees' bullpen wishlist.

The 'pen is still an area of strength and overflowing depth, even after the inevitable early maladies hit it predictably hard. There's a reason you overpromise in that department every offseason, after all. You're going to lose dudes. Dudes always find a way.

Jake Cousins and Clayton Beeter both reported to camp behind due to injury; Cousins' no-throw appears to be ending after a successful elbow exam, and Beeter's shoulder is supposedly resolved, but it slowed him down. Jonathan Loaisiga, whose target return date was never early, still saw it get pushed back by a 60-Day IL stint; if he's going to contribute, it'll be closer to the second half. Scott Effross threw just one pitch Tuesday before exiting with a hamstring issue; he'd already tumbled down the depth chart last season, but that still added an extra free space for a non-roster invitee or two to make a move.

At this moment, Devin Williams, Luke Weaver, Tim Hill, Ian Hamilton, Fernando Cruz, and Mark Leiter Jr. seem to be locks, in addition to a swingman (who could be Marcus Stroman). That leaves one wide opening, and a harder-throwing left-hander might be a nice complement to the current group. Recent ex-Twin Brett Headrick has a chance, but consider 2021 World Series champion Tyler Matzek and his steel cojones the early favorite.

"You feel like we got something there," Aaron Boone said this week about the mustachioed courage demon. Hopefully, he's right.

Yankees bullpen option Tyler Matzek seems like favorite for final Opening Day roster spot

Matzek gained a reputation for being a sentient steel beam during the 2021 postseason, when he caught the Dodgers' stars looking to all but secure the NLCS, en route to a World Series victory for the Braves. He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2022, but struggled to recover his velocity last summer after returning and bouncing around a bit.

Though it's still as early as it gets, Matzek's fastball peaked a mile per hour higher - 94.6 vs. 93.6 - in his very first spring outing with the Yankees. Often, pitchers are ahead of hitters at this juncture of spring, but that is hardly a guarantee for pitchers returning from long-term injury. Seeing Matzek look like his old self has been particularly rewarding, and it proves once again that sometimes gems can be found when aggrieved fans in the February doldrums least expect it.