Yankees demote struggling reliever, promote rookie starter

With the deadline approaching, the news that Jhony Brito had a locker in the Yankees‘ clubhouse was certainly puzzling. The corresponding move is official, it’s Ron Marinaccio who gets the axe as he’s sent down to Triple-A to presumably work on the issues he had been having lately.

Following a season where he was one of the best relievers in the sport, Marinaccio has been ineffective and unreliable for the Yankees, and with their depth in the bullpen, they could sustain having him work through issues in Scranton rather than do so with the big league club.

The 28-year-old reliever has an ugly 4.08 ERA and 4.60 FIP on the season, with teams hitting more HRs and generating more barrels against him than they did last season. His walk rate is slightly lower than what it was last season, but it’s come with a dip in strikeouts as well, and with a 12.5% HR/FB rate compared to a 4.7% clip last season, something is clearly off with his in-zone command and ability to set up his arsenal. It’ll be interesting to see what adjustments he makes in Scranton, but they now turn to Jhony Brito to bolster their pitching staff.

Are the Yankees Making a Rotation Change?

It would be odd if they decided to bring up a starter who is trying to develop as one in Triple-A and temporarily halted their development as one to get some innings in the bullpen. They have Greg Weissert and Matt Krook on the 40-Man Roster to do that for them, alongside a newly-added reliever in Anthony Misiewicz, who they added to the 40-Man Roster a few weeks ago. With Luis Severino getting pummeled for nine runs on Sunday Night Baseball, they might be looking to make a switch in the rotation.

Jhony Brito isn’t anything special as a starter, but his 4.70 ERA is certainly a lot better than Severino’s 7.49 mark, especially since the right-hander put up an ugly 11.22 ERA in July. Things aren’t trending in the right direction for the former All-Star, and the Yankees are probably looking to move him out of the rotation or, much worse, off the roster entirely. A free agent after the season, the Yankees likely don’t see much of a future for Luis Severino in New York, and with slipping playoff odds, they need to make changes sooner rather than later.