This forgotten injured Yankees pitcher hit a snag after recent minor-league dominance

The Yankees, who currently hold one of baseball's best records, are set to receive a flurry of reinforcements in the coming weeks, with players like Giancarlo Stanton, Luis Gil, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. all nearing returns from the injured list (to varying degrees). Amidst this star power, one under-the-radar Yankee who you may have forgotten about has looked particularly sharp in his initial rehab outings.

JT Brubaker, whom the Yankees acquired via a trade with the Pittsburgh Pirates last year, came into spring training this year aiming to make the roster as a bullpen arm/long relief guy. He had been a starter at the big league level for Pittsburgh, but never quite put it together. Across three seasons and 61 starts, Brubaker posted an ERA approaching five. His stuff got hit incredibly hard, especially the second and third time through the order.

Brubaker, who underwent Tommy John surgery in April of 2023, has missed most of the past two seasons. He appeared in eight games across four different levels of the minor leagues in 2024, posting an ERA of 2.70 to go along with a batting average against of only .143.

Things looked pretty good for the veteran right-hander coming into 2025. However, there is never a dull moment in Yankees spring training. Pitching in the Grapefruit League opener against the Rays, Brubaker was hit by a comebacker off the bat of Kameron Misner. He exited the game and underwent testing.

Those aforementioned tests revealed three broken ribs. Whether it was from the impact of the ball or his unnatural attempt to avoid it, no one was quite sure. One thing was for certain: he was due for a lengthy stint on the IL.

Yankees' JT Brubaker finally returning from IL stint after freak injury

Fast forward almost three months, and the 31-year-old was sent on a rehab assignment to High-A Hudson Valley where he would make his first start. He went three innings, striking out three and only surrendering one hit.

Following his strong outing, Brubaker's rehab assignment was transferred to Double-A Somerset, where he has since made two more appearances, both starts.

In his first start with the Patriots, the former Pirate pitched 2.2 innings, surrendering one run whilst walking three batters. Not ideal, but bumps are expected on the road to recovery.

Brubaker found his way back in form in his next appearance, stretching it out to four innings of scoreless baseball. He struck out three, surrendered just one hit, and didn't walk a single batter. Pretty lights out.

Unfortunately, Tuesday's outing brought his first real test; Brubaker allowed five runs and two homers in four innings after being transferred up to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. He still has one more level to conquer.

Brubaker has run his sinker up to 96 MPH, while also showing good control of both his slider and curveball. He has sporadically thrown the changeup, which looks to have more depth than ever.

The former sixth-round pick showcased good swing and miss stuff while with the big club in Pittsburgh, but opponents slugged a ton against him. He surrendered 51 homers in just over 300 innings at the major league level. Since joining the Yankees, he seems to have induced more soft contact, keeping his offspeeds on the edges or out of the zone. His fastball command has also looked solid, being able to locate the sinker to all parts of the zone. This has led to more ground balls and swings and misses on his offspeed offerings.

The Yankees pitching staff has seen support from some unexpected areas this season, with the likes of Ryan Yarbrough, Yerry de los Santos, and Will Warren becoming important pieces. Could Brubaker be another one of those stories? The one thing you can never have too much of is pitching depth, so Yankees fans should be excited to see what a healthy JT Brubaker might bring to an already blossoming pitching core.