New York Yankees Carried,Saying Good Buy To Their Present Top Star Player Who Suddenly Lose Breath…

The reliever, who started the season on the 15-day injured list because of a late start to his offseason throwing program due to a shoulder issue that ended his season last year, has been stalled once again.

Kahnle did not bounce back as well as expected after a live batting-practice session last week in Tampa, which has slowed his progress “a little bit,” manager Aaron Boone said Monday before the Yankees’ 5-2 win against the Diamondbacks.

“So he’s back in his throwing program,” Boone said before winning 5-2 against the Diamondbacks at Chase Field. “I don’t know how long that slows him.”

Tommy Kahnle, pictured during spring training, will likely return later than his initial April 12-14 target.

The Yankees had been targeting the April 12-14 series in Cleveland as a potential return date for Kahnle, but that will likely be pushed back.

The 34-year-old right-hander was expected to need to pitch in at least a few rehab games before returning to the Yankees, though Boone said Monday he did not know when Kahnle might begin a rehab assignment.

The Yankees already have relievers Scott Effross and Lou Trivino on the 60-day injured list, but their bullpen tossed 15 ¹/₃ scoreless innings in the season-opening series against the Astros.

Kirk Cousins’ cousin is the newest addition to the Yankees’ bullpen.

Jake Cousins was activated onto the roster Monday after they acquired him in a trade with the White Sox on Sunday in exchange for cash considerations.

The right-handed reliever spent spring training with the White Sox after signing a minor league deal with them in December but had been assigned to their Triple-A affiliate to start the season.

Instead, the Yankees swooped in to trade for him and immediately added him to their bullpen.

“I know our guys are really excited about him,” Boone said. “From scouts to front office, analysts, [they] feel like we got a tal

Cousins, the cousin of the new Falcons quarterback, is a heavy slider-sinker pitcher, which falls in line with the type of arm the Yankees have had success with in the past.

The 29-year-old, who owns a career 3.08 ERA in 51 appearances across parts of three seasons in the big leagues, has one minor league option remaining to give the Yankees some flexibility with him.

To make room for Cousins on the roster (both the 26-man and 40-man), the Yankees designated left-hander Tanner Tully for assignment.

The Yankees announced their minor league affiliate rosters on Monday (Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre had already been revealed with their season underway).

Among the notable assignments to Double-A Somerset: top prospect OF Spencer Jones, LHP Brock Selvidge and C Ben Rice; to High-A Hudson Valley: LHP Kyle Carr and 2B Roc Riggio; and to Single-A Tampa: SS George Lombard Jr. and SS Roderick Arias.

In a shock to no one, Juan Soto was named the American League Player of the Week after batting 9-for-17 with a 1.365 OPS and flashing terrific defense in right field during the season-opening series against the Astros. … This marked the Yankees’ first trip to Chase Field since 2019, a series in which CC Sabathia recorded his 3,000th strikeout.

In a shock to no one, Juan Soto was named the American League Player of the Week after batting 9-for-17 with a 1.365 OPS and flashing terrific defense in right field during the season-opening series against the Astros. … This marked the Yankees’ first trip to Chase Field since 2019, a series in which CC Sabathia recorded his 3,000th strikeout.

Now 28 years old, Bickford has pitched 180.2 innings at the MLB level, sporting a 4.43 ERA. Last season, he tossed 67.1 innings between the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets, enjoying a 4.95 ERA with 10.16 strikeouts per nine, a 67.2% left-on-base rate, and a 27.9% ground ball rate. He has had some issues keeping his walk numbers down but has been solid in the homer department, allowing just 1.07 per nine.

Bickford utilizes a four-seamer, slider and dabbles with a change-up. Just as Matt Blake prefers, he leans on the fastball and slider combination, touching 93.7 mph.

Interestingly, opposing hitters batted .183 against his four-seamer last season, a great number that suggests there’s room for upside. His slider wasn’t as effective, generating a .325 batting average with about league-average movement. However, his fastball generated 6% more vertical movement with 15.4 inches of drop compared to the average, suggesting that Blake may look to leverage that specific pitch.

He may try to introduce a sweeper to his arsenal since his slider has been a liability. The Yankees have focused on capitalizing on strengths and refining weaknesses. The Bombers are always looking for plug-and-play relief arms, and Bickford may be an interesting player who will make an impact this year at some point if need be.

READ MORE:

The incident was very public, and the reports of an apology and reconciliation came not long thereafter. Still, the incident that ended the 2023 season for Yankees pitcher Carlos Rodon last September lingers, a worrisome bit of punctuation on what was a miserable first season in New York.

The incident started with a mound visit by pitching coach Matt Blake just six batters into Rodon’s final start of the season, in Kansas City on September 29. He gave up five hits and a walk, including a home run, at that point and the Yankees were down, 4-0, without recording an out. When Blake came out to the mound and began talking, Rodon turned his back on him.

That’s a no-no in polite society, as well as in a coach-pitcher relationship. Rodon did apologize. Blake was asked about the incident last week, though, on “The Show” podcast, hosted by the New York Post’s Jon Heyman and Joel Sherman.

“Carlos and I are fine, I think. Obviously, a lot was made of that at the end of the year and rightfully so. It’s one of those moments at the end of the year you wish you could have back, he wishes he could have back,” Blake said.

Yankees Handed Out Disappointing $162 Million Deal

There were many reasons behind Rodon losing his cool at that point. He had been hoping to finish off the year strong, after struggling with injuries and a lack of rhythm throughout the season, his first in New York after the Yankees had given him a six-year, $162 million contract the previous December.

He had put together three decent starts in the two-and-a-half weeks before that, going 5-plus innings for three straight outings for the first time all year. He had gone 1-2, but with a 3.50 ERA and 23 strikeouts in 18 innings in those starts. A good finale in Kansas City would have given him some momentum heading into 2024.

Instead, he bombed. And as he was bombing, Blake walked in.

“There was a lot of things bubbling up for him as the season came to an end on a negative note,” he said. “But I think, in my role, the people and personalities you deal with, any time you walk out onto the field, it’s like walking into a lion’s den. So it’s like, these guys are full of emotion and when things are not going well, these things can happen. Now, do I wish he handled it differently? Of course, and we’ve talked about it and he knows it is not the way to approach it.”

Carlos Rodon Still Under Pressure in 2024

Rodon should have known better, of course, having been a 30-year-old veteran with nine years’ experience behind him. But his final line—3-8, 6.85 ERA—was unquestionably frustrating, especially with the massive contract he’d signed after back-to-back All-Star appearances with the White Sox and Giants.

Blake said the injuries Rodon suffered early in the year, with an elbow problem in Spring Training and a back injury that followed, put him in a hole from which he could not crawl out.

“It takes a little while to get into a rhythm and I don’t know if we every got that last year. So I think that there are a lot of things at play there—big contract, injury, trying to get going, stop/start,” Blake said.

But of a bigger concern for the Yankees is the notion that maybe the league has figured out Rodon a bit. His stuff is pretty simple, and he will need to keep evolving to stay ahead of hitters.

“I do think that there is a little bit of, you know, the league is adjusting as well, which is compounding on the problem that the fastball/slider mix has always been his bread and butter,” Blake said. “The league had adjusted for the fastball up, they know him. There’s an archetype for who Carlos Rodon is.”

He has come back with a new pitch in his arsenal—a cutter—and did have a relatively successful first outing against the Astros over the weekend, allowing one run over 4.1 innings. But he have up five hits and three walks and was forced to work his way out of several jams.