The New York Yankees bullpen has been a hot topic this season. Closer David Bednar has had multiple ups and downs. One reliever who hasn’t dealt with any fluctuation is Brent Headrick.
Brent Headrick is Having a Breakout Season
This season, Headrick, 28, has an immaculate 1.82 ERA. In his first 29.2 innings, he’s already posted 1.1 WAR and holds a record of 4-1.
Outside of Headrick, the Yankees’ bullpen is full of big names on the struggle bus. Notable slumping relievers include the aforementioned Bednar, Camilo Doval, Tim Hill, and Ryan Yarbrough.
The duo of Headrick and split-finger genie Fernando Cruz has kept the bullpen afloat. The Yankees are currently fighting the Rays for first place, but without Headrick, things might be much worse.
In addition to his flashy ERA, Headrick’s underlying numbers are just as pretty.
The left-hander ranks in the 90th percentile of baseball in whiff percentage and extension. His perceived velocity has his stuff playing above where it’d otherwise be.
Headrick also sports an above-average fastball and a breaking ball, per Baseball Savant. One of the most intriguing tidbits is that he’s having all this success without inducing any groundballs. If the Yankee hurler can coax a few more wormburners, he could likely be even better.
Yankee fans have been restless all season–especially since captain Aaron Judge went down with an injury.
MLB Reacts to the Yankees Recently
Here’s what people are saying:
Matt Karoly: “The Yankees have enough internal options (Weathers, Schmidt by Aug/Sept, Lagrange, Yovanny Cruz) that I’m not sure how much work they will do to improve the bullpen. Perhaps they’ll add one high leverage arm if the price is right but their biggest priority is adding a catcher.”
@NYGB904: “The Yankees need to get CJ Abrams if he’s available and addressing the bullpen. If they do those two things then maybe they’ll be a threat in the postseason. They won’t win a ring without Aaron Judge though.”
Tim Healy: “FINAL: Yankees 6, Red Sox 1. The Red Sox had a shot at a rain-interrupted sweep of the two-game series. Instead, they settle for a split. The bullpen imploded in the eighth, allowing five runs with two outs.”
Baseball Is Dead: “18 years ago, Johnny Damon went 6-for-6 with 4 RBI in a 12-11 win over the Royals, that included his walk-off single to complete the comeback. Damon was the only Yankees player to ever go 6-for-6 at Yankee Stadium. Myril Hoag did it at Fenway in 1934.”
Ryan Garcia: “The Yankees, who should just take their toys home and give up on the season, are tied for the top record in the AL and first place in the AL East.”
Bob Nightengale: “Yankees’ Cam Schlittler, who has yielded 1 or 0 runs in 8 of his last 10 starts, has a 2.38 career ERA. It’s the 4th-lowest ERA in the first 28 starts in Yankee history, trailing Stan Bahnsen (2.16), Bill Stafford (2.30 ERA) and Mel Stottlemyre Sr. (2.35 ERA), per @EliasSports.”
Gary Sheffield Jr.: “Cody Bellinger is everything the Yankees need more of. Contact-first elite gloves WITH power in their back pocket.”
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