The Yankees did not improve the bullpen — unsurprisingly, it's a problem: 3 takeaways

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Future first-ballot Hall of Famer Mike Trout hit five home runs, former Yankee Oswald Peraza had five hits — the same number his replacement at third base, Ryan McMahon, has all season — and the Yankees had two walk-off wins, courtesy of Angels closer Jordan Romano. If not for Romano, whom the Yankees should send a fruit basket to after his performances in the Bronx, New York could be staring at a nine-game losing streak. “I know we’ll hit our stride,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said after splitting the four-game series with the Angels. “I feel good about where we’re going to go, and we’re doing some of the right things, but we’ve got to put it together now.” Here are three takeaways after Thursday’s 11-4 loss to Los Angeles: Before the season began, pitching coach Matt Blake had his own questions about how effective the Yankees’ bullpen could be. “I think it has the attributes to be a good bullpen,” Blake said during spring training. “There’s some unproven commodities out there that have to step up but have the ability to do it. I think it’s on us to put them in position to succeed early so they can gain confidence and then grow into the roles as they go.” The bullpen has been a mixed bag through the first 19 games. David Bednar has a 4.70 ERA but five saves. His fastball velocity has been down nearly 2 mph from last season, and it’s clearly a reason he’s not registering the same swing-and-miss numbers as last season. Camilo Doval has a 7.36 ERA and has been hit hard. The good news for Doval is he has limited walks. Brent Headrick and Tim Hill have been effective. Fernando Cruz has been his usual high-wire act, where he could be brilliant or have no command. One of the relievers the Yankees expected more from is Jake Bird, but he was optioned to the minor leagues earlier this week, and his spot has turned into a revolving door with Yerry De los Santos and Angel Chivilli getting called up. A key issue has emerged with the bullpen: There’s a significant drop-off after its top five of Bednar, Doval, Cruz, Hill and Headrick. Paul Blackburn and Ryan Yarbrough can’t be trusted in high-leverage spots, and the Bird/De los Santos/Chivilli spot is more of a mop-up role for the time being. The lack of trust is forcing Boone to turn to those top-five options a lot. Headrick has appeared in the most games among MLB relievers, and Cruz and Hill are inside the top 25 in appearances. The Yankees need someone outside of that circle of trust to emerge, otherwise this group could be in trouble. “There’s opportunity for these guys to continue to grab roles,” Boone said after his bullpen allowed 14 runs in the Angels series. “Hopefully, some real key people emerge for us.” Coming into the season, the bullpen was oddly constructed, with two long men in Blackburn and Yarbrough. The Blackburn spot, in particular, could have (and likely should have) gone to a higher-leverage reliever. Yarbrough was seen as possible starting pitching depth when he re-signed; Blackburn would have been an emergency starter option. But the Yankees chose not to sign a key reliever in free agency, even after losing Devin Williams and Luke Weaver to the New York Mets. Although both had their warts, they were two of the club’s highest-leverage relievers in 2025. Losing them meant more impactful roles for the returning relievers. The lack of spending on a reliever will be a talking point throughout the season if the bullpen cannot stabilize. “It’s a volatile market in general,” Blake said in spring training. “You see a lot of (teams) that spend high dollars on relievers, and it doesn’t always pan out. You can find some under-the-radar guys with good stuff that haven’t gotten opportunities, or maybe you change something about the way they’ve been operating, and you catch lightning in a bottle.” The biggest question about the Yankees coming into the season remains after 19 games. In the meantime, not much, other than hoping they get better performances out of their current group. If everyone remains healthy when Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón are ready to return, the Yankees could move two of their current starters to the bullpen. It’s not a given that will help, but Ryan Weathers and Will Warren have the ability to become good relievers. Luis Gil should be sent to the minors if the club needs to make space on the 26-man roster. He doesn’t possess the command nor stuff to be effective out of the bullpen. The Yankees could also turn to Carlos Lagrange at some point this season. With his overpowering fastball and secondaries, he could become dominant in a relief role. But calling up Lagrange likely won’t happen anytime soon. Yovanny Cruz, who impressed Yankees brass in spring training, has pitched well in the minors. Like Lagrange, he has an overpowering fastball and strikeout stuff. He could become an option at some point. But the Yankees need their starters to pitch deeper into games so they aren’t forced to use some of their depth bullpen arms. Cole is set for his first rehab assignment start on Friday with Double-A Somerset. He is expected to throw around 40 pitches, and it will be the most significant step yet in his journey back from Tommy John surgery. It is expected Cole will be built up to a “higher threshold” than Cam Schlittler was at when he made his season debut against the San Francisco Giants earlier this season, meaning the Yankees will not activate Cole until his pitch count is fully built up. Friday will start Cole’s 30-day window to be activated, but because he underwent Tommy John surgery, the Yankees could extend his rehab assignment by three consecutive 10-day periods if they wish. That means the latest Cole could be kept in the minors is June 16, but if all goes well, he should be back in the big leagues before then. The 35-year-old threw 42 pitches over three innings during a simulated game at the team’s High-A complex on Sunday, as well as a bullpen session at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday. Since his surgery 13 months ago, all has gone according to plan. Cole’s best-case scenario, per him and the team, is to be back by late May or early June. He remains on track for that timeline. The same can be said for Rodón. The Yankees expected Rodón to be back in their rotation by late April/early May, and based on his rehab progress, that’s still achievable. Rodón will throw a live batting practice on Saturday, and if all goes well, he’ll start a rehab assignment on Thursday. Boone said Rodón will have “at least” three starts in the minors before making his season debut. If he follows a normal five-day plan for starting pitchers, that would put him in line to start May 8 against the Milwaukee Brewers. Both starters’ impending returns can’t come soon enough for the Yankees, with Gil one of MLB’s least effective starting pitchers. Among the 150 starting pitchers who’ve completed at least 100 innings since Aug. 12, 2024 (the span encapsulates his last 20 starts), Gil ranks last in walk percentage and expected FIP; third-to-last in strikeout-to-walk ratio; and fifth-worst in FIP. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms Chris Kirschner is a staff writer for The Athletic covering the New York Yankees. He previously covered the Atlanta Hawks from 2018-2022 for The Athletic. Chris was named Georgia's Sportswriter of the Year in 2021 for his work covering the Hawks. Chris is a native of Bronx, NY. Follow Chris on Twitter @chriskirschner