Bronx Bomber Ball

Baseball is one of the few areas in life where too much of one thing is usually good, and the Yankees certainly won’t be ones to complain about the depth of their relief pitching. New York’s bullpen has unsurprisingly been one of the best (most would argue the best) in baseball in 2018. Posting a 2.68 team ERA in 271.2 innings of relief, the Yankees have little room for any changes aside from perhaps finding a new left-hander to replace the struggling Chasen Shreve. Unfortunately for Tommy Kahnle, he throws with his right hand, and with the breakout success of fellow righty Jonathan Holder, the once highly-valued Kahnle may be stuck in no man’s land at Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre. Photo Credit: Getty Images

The pinstriped career of Aroldis Chapman has had its ups-and-downs. When Brian Cashman went out and traded for the hard-throwing left-hander, Yankees fans thought he, along with fellow-lefty Andrew Miller, were the missing pieces needed for another World Series run. But the veterans broke down, the prospects weren’t ready, and it was the Chicago Cubs that Chapman would help lead to a World Series title in 2016 (but not before the Yankees received a certain middle-infielder by the name of Gleyber Torres in exchange). When he entered free agency again after 2016, Cashman jumped at the opportunity to bring the elite closer back to the Bronx in hopes of a playoff berth. While the Yankees did make it to the ALCS in 2017, the season ended up being one of the worst of Chapman’s career. After a few minor injuries, trouble with command, and building up his breaking pitch, Aroldis Chapman is back to being one of the most-feared relievers in baseball in 2018. Photo Credit: MLB.com ...

Since Spring Training, it has seemed like a foregone conclusion: the Yankees will make a deal for a starting pitcher. Now, with the announcement on Tuesday that left-hander Jordan Montgomery will require Tommy John Surgery to repair his throwing elbow, the need is more pressing than ever. Thanks to a lack of consistency from everyone in the Yankees rotation aside from ace Luis Severino, Brian Cashman will have to work his magic again to ensure that New York has a fighting chance against their American League foes if the Yankees make a playoff run. So, what moves can Cashman reasonably make that would bolster the Yankees rotation for October baseball?   Photo Credit:  Thearon W. Henderson / Getty Images

A few weeks ago, Yankee fans were calling for his head. Yankees Twitter was ablaze with hot takes from armchair scouts giving their analysis of Jonathan Holder, and the consensus was bleak: “Get rid of this bum!” Luckily for both Holder and the Yankees, the fans don’t make the personnel decisions. Aaron Boone continued to pitch Holder in the later innings, and the young right-hander has proven the team’s patience was worth it. With injuries to Tommy Kahnle and Adam Warren, Holder’s recent success has transformed him into one of the most important arms at Boone’s disposal. Photo Credit: Newsday

Aaron Boone was hesitant to make the move at first, and understandably so. The New York Yankees have arguably the best hitting catcher in baseball in Gary Sanchez, so ideally Boone would like to get him into the lineup as much as possible. However, in a game where raw statistics are so important, it is hard to argue with the numbers, and the numbers say that Sonny Gray is a better pitcher when Austin Romine is behind the plate laying down the signs. Even if it means giving Sanchez a few more off days than you would like, there is a strong case for Romine being Gray’s personal catcher. Photo Credit: NJ.com

Yet another big day at the plate for Didi Gregorius led the Yankees to their fifth consecutive win on Wednesday  night , as they defeated the Minnesota Twins 7-4. The Yankees shortstop also made history when he homered in the third inning. Gregorius became the first Yankees shortstop ever to hit a homerun in four consecutive games. The Bronx Bombers are now 14-9 on the season.   Photo via New York Yankees

Behind a laboring Sonny Gray, the Yankees dropped the rubber-game of their three-game set with the Boston Red Sox by a final score of 6-3. Boston starter Rick Porcello mowed through the New York lineup, pitching seven shutout innings  en  route to his third win in as many starts. The only fallout from Wednesday’s tensions was a plunking of Hanley Ramirez by Gray, which nailed Boston’s first baseman on the left wrist in the first inning. Although the hit-by-pitch looked unintentional, Ramirez was forced to leave the game with an injury.   Photo Credit: AP

After scoring 11 runs on Tuesday, the Yankees’ offense stayed hot on Wednesday afternoon, defeating the Tampa Bay Rays 7-2. Wednesday’s game was delayed for over an hour due to rain in the Bronx, but the weather did not affect New York’s power strokes, as Giancarlo Stanton, Gary Sanchez, and Aaron Judge all went deep. On the other side of the ball, Yankees’ starter Luis Severino was in control, picking up his second win in as many starts. With the win, the Yankees swept the short two-game set against their American League East rivals, moving their record to 4-2 on the young season. Photo Credit: Kathy Willens | AP

The Yankees announced on Tuesday that the team acquired outfielder Trayce Thompson off of waivers from the Los Angeles Dodgers. The club placed pitcher Ben Heller on the 60-day disabled list to clear room on the 40-man roster for Thompson. The Yankees initially placed Heller on the 10-day disabled list on Monday due to a bone spur in his pitching elbow. Thompson, 27, was designated for assignment by the Dodgers on March 27. Photo via Getty Images

A two-home run day from Justin Smoak led the Blue Jays to a 7-4 win over the Yankees on Sunday afternoon, as the American League East rivals split their four-game season-opening series in Toronto. Smoak gave the Jays a 7-4 lead with a grand slam off of David Robertson in the bottom of the eighth inning. Brandon Drury continued to rake for the Yankees, going 2-for-3 on Sunday, with a homer and two RBIs. Photo Credit: Carlos Osorio | Toronto Star Down 4-1 in the seventh, Smoak pulled the Jays to within a run with a two-run homer off of Tommy Kahnle, who entered the game to start the frame. Kahnle came on in relief of Chad Green, who pitched two scoreless frames out of the bullpen. Kahnle walked Josh Donaldson to start the inning, before Smoak put a 1-0 offering over the wall in center to make it a 4-3 Yankees lead. Robertson entered the game with two outs in the bottom of the seventh in relief of Kahnle. Despite getting out of the seventh unscathed, Robe...