The New York Yankees are clearly not playing their best baseball right now. They are at risk of losing their fifth consecutive series if they do not defeat the Toronto Blue Jays on Sunday, and they have lost 11 of their last 15 games.
Pitchers who had been dominant earlier in the season have faltered, and batters who had been on fire have gone cold.
It’s simply one of those stretches, but the Yankees are focused on spotting areas for improvement as the deadline approaches. One of these units is undoubtedly the bullpen.
A few days ago, the organization thought it was addressing the need for dependable bullpen arms in Phil Bickford.
The righty has had successful seasons in the past, but his performance this year was a complete mystery.
The Yankees are removing Bickford from the 40-man roster
His performance ultimately answered those questions, albeit not in a great way. After five lackluster outings (including a terrible one against the Blue Jays on Saturday), the Yankees have opted to release him and bring up Josh Maciejewski.
“Prior to today’s game, the Yankees made the following roster moves: •Selected LHP Josh Maciejewski (#63) to the active roster. •Designated RHP Phil Bickford for assignment,” the team announced on Sunday.
Bickford allowed five runs on Saturday, recording only two outs. He turned a 3-1 deficit into a chuckle, prompting the Yankees to replace him on the roster.
His ERA in five innings pitched is 14.40, with a WHIP of 1.80. Since he was DFA’d, the most likely scenario is for Bickford to find another big league opportunity, possibly with a team that can be more patient than the bullpen-needy Yankees.
Maciejewski has a 4.28 ERA over 27.1 Triple-A innings.
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