Yankees quietly cut bait on lefty relief option with pre-Subway Series trade

The New York Yankees will never be in a position to turn down bullpen depth, no matter how "set" they feel at any given moment. Still, they're certainly in a position right now to render judgment on the fleet of depth arms they imported this offseason, and it appears they've learned all they needed to about a former second-round pick.

Rob Zastryzny, who was drafted by the Cubs and had the distinction of being the player cast off their roster between the 2016 NLCS and World Series to accommodate Kyle Schwarber, was brought in this offseason as a wily veteran reclamation arm to hold down the fort at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. The Cubs had claimed him off waivers again earlier in the offseason, but when it came time for his DFA, he refused the assignment in order to explore his options.

Those options ended up being ... a very similar minor-league contract with the Yankees.

When he arrived at camp in Tampa, he was outshined by other higher-upside lefties like Brent Headrick and Tyler Matzek, both of whom have already cycled through MLB reps this season. Zastryzny never got that shot, instead posting a 4.50 ERA in 13 games/12 innings with the RailRiders, allowing 16 hits in the process.

Instead of considering him for a call-up, the Yankees leveraged his left arm and sent him to a familiar landing spot on Friday, moments before their Subway Series with the Mets. Zastryzny, who spent a portion of 2024 with the Brewers, was coming home in exchange for cash considerations.

Yankees trade left-handed reliever Rob Zastryzny to the Milwaukee Brewers

Some teams just ... don't know how to quit players, who always seem to find their way back to one of their most recent homes. That's the case with Zastryzny, who dominated in 7 2/3 one-run innings for Milwaukee last summer, and will probably get circulated through their always-above-average bullpen in a time of need.

As for the Yankees, they promoted Jonathan Loaisiga on Friday slightly ahead of schedule and let Matzek go into the DFA process. Tough day to be a left-hander in the system, but the Yanks seem properly satisfied with their current bullpen depth.