Tuesday night put a spotlight on a Yankees bullpen problem that has been building for a while.
In a 9-7 loss to the Houston Astros, Brent Headrick gave up a season-high three runs after entering the night with only five runs allowed over his previous 44 appearances. That alone stung. But the bigger concern for New York was what happened two innings earlier, when Fernando Cruz surrendered a two-run homer to Astros shortstop Jeremy Peña and deepened a rough stretch for one of Aaron Boone’s most trusted late-inning arms.
Since the All-Star break, Cruz has a 5.52 ERA and a 7.38 FIP, and he’s given up five home runs. For a reliever who has been deployed in a fireman role and is expected to handle some of the game’s biggest spots, that’s a serious issue with October getting closer.
“There’s ups and downs like every player has,” Cruz said of his recent struggles. “It’s been a lot of stuff regarding that, that we’re on top of.
Just gotta be better. It’s gonna come.
My splitter hasn’t been as effective. A little bit of a mechanical change.
We’re playing (against) Major League Baseball players, and they’re really good at it. I think they made the change.
Now we have to adjust.”
Cruz’s splitter has been the calling card of his rise, the pitch he calls his gift from God. But this season, it hasn’t had the same bite.
The slugging percentage against it is up, and the whiff rate has dropped. On splitters at the bottom of the zone and below, his whiff percentage has fallen nearly 12 percentage points.
Cruz said the dip in swing-and-miss is something he has chosen to live with.
“I just have the mentality of getting more outs instead of swing-and-miss,” Cruz said.
The problem is that the results haven’t followed. His FIP is up nearly a run from last season, his expected FIP is the worst of his career, and he’s walking hitters at his worst rate since his rookie year. Those aren’t the numbers New York wants from a pitcher it plans to lean on heavily in the postseason.
Boone made it clear Cruz remains part of the plan.
“He’s got to be part of the equation,” Boone said. “We still need him to get big outs for us.”
The fastball has become another trouble spot. Last season, Cruz’s four-seamer produced eye-popping surface numbers, with batters going 3-for-29 and striking out seven times.
The underlying indicators were less flattering then, and this year those concerns have shown up in the results. Cruz is throwing the pitch nearly 13 percent more often than he did last season, and hitters have punished it.
Peña’s homer came on a fastball down the middle, and Cruz entered Tuesday having allowed a .492 slugging percentage against his four-seamer.
The read from opponents seems straightforward: sit on the fastball and wait for the splitter to miss the zone.
Velocity may be part of the story, too. Cruz’s fastball is down from last season, a possible sign of fatigue that could help explain the slide. He said he feels fine, though.
“Every player has their battles with their bodies, but we’re gonna be good,” Cruz said.
There was also an odd scene after the game. Cruz left the clubhouse with trainer Tim Lentych at his side, with Boone waiting for him.
Before he spoke to reporters, a Yankees spokesman also spoke with Cruz in front of his locker. None of that is typical after a game.
Whatever the cause, the Yankees need Cruz back on track quickly. With October approaching, he remains too important to their bullpen picture to let this linger.
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