Predicting which Yankees lose their roster spots when Ryan Weathers, Clarke Schmidt return

The New York Yankees are about to get some reinforcements to the pitching staff. Clarke Schmidt is on the verge of being called up, while Ryan Weathers is progressing and shouldn't be too far behind. That's welcome news for a bullpen that has kept it together but has felt like it's on the verge of collapse all season.

When these talented arms return, it will create a roster crunch that will lead to some tough decisions as the Yankees come down the final stretch and prepare for October. The easy answer is to send Bradley Hanner down. He's served as the last arm in the bullpen and hasn't impressed by any means.

From there, things get complicated. The Yankees will need to free up one more roster spot, and one of Michael Fulmer, Luis Gil, and Ryan Yarbrough will get the boot. The question becomes: who should New York keep, and who should the club kick to the curb?

Clarke Schmidt and Ryan Weathers will force the Yankees to move on one of Michael Fulmer, Luis Gil, or Ryan Yarbrough

The hardest part of making the decision is the fact that the sample size with Gil and Fulmer is so small. Gil has made just two appearances and thrown four innings since coming back to the bigs, but he had an impressive, albeit also short, minor league showing as a reliever since being activated from the IL.

Fulmer is interesting because, over his 10 2/3 innings across his stints with the Angels and the Yankees, he's struck out 26.1% of batters faced while yielding just a .179 batting average against. The flip side is that he's struggled with command and represents a volatile option that carries a lot of risk.

Finally, Yarbrough has the least amount of volatility, the largest sample to draw from, and fills a specific role. While plenty of these guys, including Schmidt and Weathers, have experience as starters, it's unclear if any of them would be built up enough to fill the mop-up role that Yarbrough specializes in. The veteran lefty might not be the most exciting choice, but he's the safest one.

So, with all that considered, the way things should break down is as follows. New York would be wise to keep Yarbrough because he'll help save the rest of the 'pen in the event of a blowout. That's the kind of hidden impact that truly means something, especially this time of year when arms are already worn down.

From there, the devil you know is always better than the devil you don't. Gil's Rookie of the Year season feels like a lifetime ago (even if it was only in 2024), but if the Yankees are going to bet on a high-variance pitcher, it's better to do so with one they have the familiarity with. Matt Blake knows Gil well, and if they're going to try to coach someone up to thrive in this role it's easier to do it when you have a pre-existing relationship.

All of this is temporary, too. Once October rolls around and rosters shrink back to 26 men, the Yankees will have another decision to make. For now, though, they have to focus on seeding and potentially catching the Rays, and the best way to do that is with Gil and Yarbrough.

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