The Yankees aren’t making headlines with splashy free-agent signings this winter, but they are quietly building out the edges of their roster with a familiar strategy - taking low-risk chances on pitchers with big-league experience and untapped potential. Their latest move? Adding right-hander Dylan Coleman on a minor league deal.
Coleman, 29, has bounced around a bit in recent years, but there was a time - not too long ago - when he looked like a legitimate late-inning arm. Back in 2022 with the Kansas City Royals, he posted a 2.78 ERA over 68 innings, flashing a fastball that averaged a blistering 97.6 mph. That kind of velocity doesn’t just vanish, and the Yankees are clearly betting there’s something still in the tank.
Since that breakout season, though, things haven’t quite clicked. Coleman spent 2024 in the Houston Astros organization before signing a minor league deal with the Orioles.
He only logged 14.2 innings between Double-A and Triple-A before Baltimore cut ties in May. It’s been a tough stretch, but the Yankees have shown a knack for finding value where others see a dead end.
Just look at what they did last year with Luke Weaver. Once a journeyman starter struggling to find consistency, Weaver landed in the Bronx and reinvented himself in the bullpen. By the end of the season, he was one of the Yankees’ most reliable arms, parlaying that success into a $22 million deal with the Mets this offseason.
Or take Tim Hill. The lefty specialist had been released by the 41-121 White Sox - one of the worst teams in league history - before the Yankees scooped him up and gave him a second life. It’s become something of a theme in New York: find the overlooked, the discarded, the guys with something to prove, and see if the organization’s development infrastructure can bring out the best in them.
That’s the blueprint Coleman will be trying to follow this spring. He’s got the velocity, he’s got the big-league experience, and now he’s got a fresh start with a team that’s shown it knows how to unlock hidden potential.
This may end up being a footnote in the Yankees’ offseason, or it could turn into one of those under-the-radar moves that pays dividends down the stretch. Either way, it’s a classic Yankees reclamation project - and one worth keeping an eye on as camp opens.