Troubled Yankees relievers might've just saved their jobs at the last spring moment

In the battle for the last two spots in the New York Yankees' bullpen, the contenders can easily be divided into two tiers. There are those whom the Yankees have a significant investment in, including Jake Bird, Angel Chivilli, and Cade Winquest, and then there's a group of live-armed flyers hoping to latch on.

Both Bird and Chivilli were acquired in separate trades from the Colorado Rockies, though the latter has already excused himself from the running with a truly ghastly showing this spring. Winquest, the club's first Rule 5 draft pick since 2011, represents a different kind of investment, which has little room for error. So far, the duo has been firmly on the bubble, but their St. Patrick's Day performances against the Tampa Bay Rays might have been the sign that the tide is turning in their favor.

Each man worked a scoreless inning, with Winquest giving up just one hit while striking out one and bringing his spring ERA down to 4.91. Bird struck out three while walking one, and shaved his ERA down to 3.24.

Yankees have been waiting for any excuse to give Jake Bird and Cade Winquest bullpen jobs

A common misconception about this time of year is that the guys with the best spring performances at each position will be the ones to win a job on the Opening Day roster. There's more nuance to the calculations than that, however.

The MLB season is a marathon, not a sprint. That means when it comes down to the final decisions, New York will be thinking about what's in its best interests for March 25 against the San Francisco Giants and also Sept. 12 against the New York Mets.

Throughout the spring, we've tried to read the tea leaves and infer where the Yankees might go based on Aaron Boone's comments. He's spoken highly of lefty Brent Headrick at a few different points this spring. He's heaped praise on little-known Kervin Castro, too. Both guys have pitched well enough to vault themselves into the conversation, and perhaps, if this were solely based on merit, have the inside track.

But what's good for today isn't always the best for tomorrow. Both Headrick and Castro have minor league options remaining. They can be sent down to Scranton and saved for a rainy day. Winquest cannot. If the Yankees want to demote him, they'll first have to offer him back to the St. Louis Cardinals, and one has to imagine that a club like that has just begun its descent into a rebuild would welcome a live young arm back without hesitation.

For Bird, things are a bit different. He, too, has an option remaining, but in this case, it's more about saving face. His brief but horrendous showing after the deadline deal that brought him to the Bronx already made the team look foolish, and then Matt Blake doubled down by hyping him up coming into spring training. The Yankees need him to work out because they've spent so much time and energy telling us how great he'll be. Ego is always a motivating factor.

At the end of the day, Bird and Winquest only need to pitch well enough for their inclusion to be plausible. Tuesday's performances put them on the path to do just that. For Headrick and Castro, it might be a tough break, but if either of the two preferred options struggle or if injuries strike, they've put themselves in position to be the first ones called up.

That's the name of the game: holding as many quality assets as possible for as long as possible in order to be prepared for whatever may arise. Keeping Bird and Winquest on the Opening Day roster is the best chance to make that happen.