Yankees recall Greg Weissert for bullpen help

The New York Yankees have called up a familiar face to join the bullpen this weekend in righty Greg Weissert. And in a corresponding move last night, GM Brian Cashman sent down 24-year-old starter/bulk arm Randy Vásquez.

Weissert first hit the big league scene around this time last year, when his slider caught eyes across 12 games for the Yankees down the stretch. He’s battled control problems though, so in 2023, he’s been used to quite literally fill in the gap for a day or two, only to return to the minors for more seasoning.

The bulk of Weissert’s MLB time this year came in April, when he was the first man up to replace the injured Jonathan Loáisiga in the bullpen. He was OK at best, allowing only a run across 4.1 innings, albeit while walking four batters and plunking another. So he was sent down, and then called back up on two different occasions, in early-May and mid-June, on both occasions to pitch in when the team was short on arms.

The series with Atlanta really put a strain on the bullpen, as no starter was able to pitch into the fifth inning. So a fresh arm comes along for this pivotal weekend series against the Red Sox, though if Weissert actually appears, it’s probably not a good sign. Jhony Brito will aim to get New York off on the right foot tonight, as he’ll start the game outright rather than having it be an opener situation.

On the flip side, Vásquez goes down after holding his own in a stint that involved four starts, the last of which a rather serviceable 3.1 innings against the Atlanta Braves. It was better than what Clarke Schmidt and Luis Severino delivered, anyway.