Losers of five consecutive games and eight of their last 10, the Yankees are desperate to turn things around. Ryan Weathers and some suspect defensive play are mostly to blame for Monday’s loss against the Tigers, one in which the bullpen had to throw 7.1 innings.
With the unit needing a fresh arm for the next few days, the Bombers have recalled right-hander Yovanny Cruz from Triple-A Scranton ahead of Tuesday night’s matchup with Detroit. Yerry De los Santos, who tossed two frames on Monday and allowed two unearned runs in the process, was sent down to the RailRiders following the game.
The 26-year-old Cruz has racked up 2.1 innings in the majors this year, allowing no runs or walks and striking out three. He has mostly pitched in Scranton, where he has a solid 3.18 ERA and a 3.88 FIP in 28.1 innings of work. Cruz has struggled a bit in June, surrendering four earned runs in 8.2 innings, but was able to string together a couple of scoreless appearances last week, putting himself in a position to help the Yankees and getting the call.
Cruz’s control is not the best, as he walked 4.1 hitters per nine in Triple-A, but he is armed with a couple of impressive pitches in his triple-digit fastball and his slider. The latter is the real swing-and-miss weapon, and he’s not afraid of using it against both lefties and righties.
If he can keep his fastball in the strike zone but away from the middle-middle part of it, Cruz could be an interesting relief pitching piece for the Yankees in the upcoming weeks. He just needs a shot and some consistency.
De los Santos, who was called up last week, returns to Triple-A with a 1.04 ERA in 8.2 MLB innings this season,, albeit mostly mop-up work. He is likely to get another shot eventually whenever the Yankees are in another roster crunch.
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