Yankees fans have to love everything about Yovanny Cruz's debut

The New York Yankees' bullpen has been scuffling. It shouldn't be a surprise, considering this is essentially the same group that disappointed us last year. One of the underrated deficiencies in the relief corps has been a lack of high-octane velocity. Down on the farm, we'd hoped that flamethrowing journeyman Yovanny Cruz would get a shot. Earlier this week, he finally got the call, though the context of the move made it seem as if it might be short-lived.

Despite his ascension to the big league roster, we weren't sure if we were actually going to see him in action. Remember Cade Winquest? Fortunately, we didn't have to wait long, with Cruz getting the call in the eighth inning of the May 20 matchup against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Cruz entered with the Yankees trailing 2-0. He needed to hold the deficit there to give the offense a chance to fight back. He did just that. He went two scoreless innings, averaging a much-needed 99.8 miles per hour on his fastball, and striking out three Blue Jays. He did that in a ridiculously efficient 15 pitches.

Dominant might not be a strong enough word to describe what Cruz did. He was completely locked in, landing seven of his eight fastballs in the zone, and generating a 50% whiff rate on his nasty slider. It was six-up, six-down perfection.

Yovanny Cruz's postgame reaction gave us hope, but then the Yankees dashed it

For Cruz, the journey to the big leagues has been one of fits and starts. Signed out of the Dominican Republic for just $60,000 by the Chicago Cubs in 2016, Cruz debuted in 2017 but didn't rise above short-season ball until 2022. In the process, his 2020 season was wiped out by the COVID-19 pandemic, and an injury cost him the 2021 campaign.

He'd pitch sparingly through the close of the 2023 season. While he had turned heads with his electric arm, he had developed command issues that dampened his future outlook. The Cubs would cut bait after the 2023 season, with Cruz joining the Padres organization in 2024 and then the Red Sox in 2025.

When the Yankees signed him last November, he had never pitched above Double-A and was coming off a career-worst 17.3% walk rate. An injury delayed his spring debut, but when we finally got eyes on him, he blew us away.

Still, Cruz started the year in Scranton and showed out in April. However, when the calendar hit May, he started to struggle again. From May 1-16, Cruz tossed seven innings with six strikeouts, six walks, and an ugly 6.43 ERA.

That's part of what made his call-up feel like a filler move until Gerrit Cole was ready to be activated for the May 22 matchup against the Tampa Bay Rays. That proved to be the case as the Yankees sent him back to Scranton after the game on May 21.

Making his major league debut was a major accomplishment for a player who had endured so much in pursuit of his dream. When asked about it after the game, Cruz gave a perfect, wholesome response that made it impossible not to root for him.

"Oof. Thank God for this opportunity, the opportunity the team gave me there. I felt a little nervous going in but very happy with the outing," Cruz said via his interpreter.

That sigh of relief was well-deserved, and the nerves were understandable, but on the mound he had ice water in his veins as he sliced and diced his way through Toronto's lineup.

It's too early to proclaim anything, but it is clear that Cruz has the potential to solve some real problems for the Yankees' bullpen. He has the velocity they crave as well as the strikeout stuff (we didn't even see his wicked splitter) that others in the 'pen are lacking.

Throw in that wholesomeness, and we're rooting for him to get a real shot to come back and prove that he can not only stick, but be an impact reliever.

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