Rival scout's Yankees trade deadline take gets even more embarrassing after Cubs news

The New York Yankees have a bullpen problem. They had one in April when Jonathan Loaisiga went down, removing a swing-and-miss option they never really should've relied on in the first place. They had one in June, when Clay Holmes went from a meltdown-free closer to someone who blows saves at such a historic pace that it might portend World Series doom before the playoffs even begin.

And they have one now, after the trade deadline, when they chose to patch their most obvious hole with Mark Leiter Jr. and Enyel De Los Santos and ... that's it.

De Los Santos has since been DFA'd after allowing seven runs against the Chicago White Sox. He was then claimed by the Chicago White Sox. Good trade for the Chicago White Sox.

Leiter Jr.? He was thrown right into the fire in Philadelphia after hopping off the deadline plane, and escaped a few early jams, but hasn't been able to find the same rhythm he'd cracked with the Cubbies since then. When he arrived, Leiter Jr. was coming off 7 2/3 perfect innings with Chicago in July, lowering his ERA from 5.34 to 4.21. His first appearance with the Yankees was scoreless, but he couldn't escape his second one unscathed, and things have snowballed from there, leading to a 6.48 ERA and a remarkable 16 hits allowed in 8 1/3 frames with the Bombers. But hey, at least he's controllably bad through 2026!

And then there's the return. Chicago promoted relief prospect Jack Neely to the majors on Tuesday. He's the mustachioed arm the Yankees sent their way in exchange for Leiter Jr., paired with Ben Cowles, and he's posted 6 2/3 innings with the Triple-A Iowa Cubs, allowing zero earned runs and striking out 13. Apparently, according to one deadline scout who'd probably like to eat his words, that's not something the Yankees are currently missing or will ever miss.

Yankees might not miss Jack Neely for long, but they sure do miss him right now

The time may come when the Yankees eventually unlock Leiter Jr. and his splitter begins to play up again. Right now, though, he looks a lot like the pitcher his surface numbers claimed he was, rather than some magical arm buried below the surface of his own transgressions. Hittable fastball, can rack up the Ks when he's right but can collapse when he's wrong, leading to his ERA ballooning based on a handful of spiral-filled outings.

Neely? The Yankees can build a bullpen without him, sure. But sometimes it's helpful to promote from within rather than scrambling to take advantage of someone else's controllable assets. After all, there's no easier way to add a controllable arm than promoting your own prospects.

Sorry, Rival Scout Who Looks a Lot Like Brian Cashman. Seems like the Yankees "missed" again.