The Yankees needed a roster spot filled, and they turned to a familiar kind of gamble: a veteran arm with recent trouble but a track record of surviving in the majors.
New York called up Triple-A reliever Justin Topa, according to Talkin’ Yanks on X. The move comes while the Yankees sit at 74-56, second in the American League East and three games behind the Tampa Bay Rays.
Their bullpen has been the club’s steadiest unit all season, and its 2.95 cumulative ERA leads MLB by a wide margin as of Aug. 24.
That relief group was supposed to carry some uncertainty into the year, but it has done the opposite. David Bednar has delivered exactly what was expected of him, while left-hander Brent Headrick and right-hander Paul Blackburn have emerged as key setup options after both were claimed off waivers last season.
Topa, 35, arrives with plenty of big league mileage. He has pitched in seven MLB seasons, starting with the Milwaukee Brewers before moving on to the Seattle Mariners and then the Minnesota Twins. Minnesota used him in 23 games this season, and he logged 19 innings with an 8.05 ERA, a 13% strikeout rate and a 12% walk rate before being designated for assignment on May 19.
His path did not stop there. The Toronto Blue Jays briefly signed him afterward, but he was cut loose there as well before the Yankees brought him in on a minor league deal on August 14th. In four appearances for Triple-A Scranton Wilkes-Barre, he worked five innings and gave up one earned run.
For now, Topa is expected to slot into the back end of New York’s bullpen, the kind of arm used when the game is already leaning out of reach. He could also be asked to absorb innings, especially with starters Max Fried and Ryan Weathers injured.
And if he pitches well, this may not be a short stay. The Yankees have a habit of getting more out of pitchers than other teams do, and Topa is the latest test case. Headrick and Blackburn have already shown what that can look like.
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