Yankees fail to pull off trade for Dodgers reliever fans wanted to complete bullpen

The New York Yankees are running it back with a very good roster that had a massive flaw in 2025: great offense (against both good teams and bad), strong rotation (that's getting deeper), and the worst bullpen imaginable. They lost Devin Williams and Luke Weaver — sounds good so far! — but didn't replace them with a single external free agent option to serve as an established bullpen anchor. Cade Winquest and Brent Headrick could make everything better. Wouldn't be the most ludicrous thing to ever happen. But a familiar addition or two would've been nice.

Fan angst led to numerous calls for left-hander Anthony Banda — briefly a Yankee in 2022 — when the Dodgers let him loose last week. Banda's peripherals don't match his production (3.08 ERA in 2024, 3.18 ERA in 2025, 4.52 FIP last year), but he'd certainly be someone worth cutting in line on the waiver wire for.

Instead of the Yankees taking a crack at it, though, it was the Minnesota Twins who bought in on Thursday afternoon, probably so they could get a chance to shop Banda at the deadline. It's time for Minnesota to cross their fingers that his regression doesn't occur on their watch.

Should Yankee fans be upset about the missed opportunity? Eh. Would've been worth a try at this low, low price, but he doesn't move the needle nearly as much as the types of relievers that they really should've prioritized earlier.

What other relievers can Yankees sign or trade for after Dodgers-Twins Anthony Banda trade?

JoJo Romero is a St. Louis Cardinal until he's not. The Yankees should be calling Chaim Bloom every single day to convince him not to wait until the deadline to strike. Keep an eye on the Miami Marlins, too; it's still surprising the Yankees didn't try to slide Anthony Bender into the Ryan Weathers trade, given the price they paid.

The free agent market still has a few inexpensive potential difference-makers, too. Michael Kopech provides all-world upside, but injury troubles galore. Danny Coulombe is a rock-steady lefty, but might fall off the cliff someday after turning 36. Old friend Justin Wilson is available after finding his footing again in Boston. They'd better hurry; the Red Sox have telegraphed their intention to bring in lefty bullpen arms and missed on Banda. Both of the aforementioned lefties are probably on Craig Breslow's shopping list.

The Yankees might be satisfied with where they are, but where they are is an arm or two short, and the prescription is a deadline scramble. Unfortunately, that was probably true whether or not they added Banda instead of Minnesota.