Ryan Weathers is finally on the verge of picking up a ball again.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone said the left-hander will start a throwing program this weekend, a sign that Weathers is moving past the left forearm flexor strain that has kept him on the 15-day injured list since August 23. Boone had originally described the shutdown as a two-to-four-week process, so this lines up with the early end of that window.
The Yankees have reason to keep a close eye on what Weathers can give them. He arrived in New York in a January trade with the Marlins and has taken a clear step forward in 2026, turning in a 3.60 ERA over a career-high 25 starts.
His usual ground-ball approach is still there, but now he’s pairing it with a career-best 25.2% strikeout rate. The underlying numbers are in the same neighborhood, too, with a 3.61 FIP and 3.48 SIERA backing up the results.
There’s just not much calendar left for him to stretch back out as a starter. A full rehab assignment doesn’t really fit the moment, and the Yankees’ rotation is already spoken for.
Will Warren, the No. 5 starter, threw 2 1/3 scoreless innings in relief of Max Fried tonight, and Fried worked 5 2/3 innings on 72 pitches. With Cam Schlittler, Gerrit Cole, Fried, and Carlos Rodón lining up as the playoff rotation, the most likely path for Weathers is a move to the bullpen down the stretch.
That could carry into October as well.
That would give the Yankees another left-handed weapon behind Brent Headrick, who has become their most effective southpaw. After a quiet 3.13 ERA in limited work last season, Headrick has exploded in 2026 with a 1.93 ERA across 71 appearances and has earned a setup job in front of closer David Bednar.
Hill has been replacement-level in his third year with the club, and Ryan Yarbrough has filled a serviceable long-man role. Weathers would add a second high-end lefty to that mix.
He’d also help cover for Fernando Cruz, whose injury created a hole in the late innings. The 36-year-old right-hander was one of Boone’s most trusted relievers before right elbow discomfort sent him to the IL on August 26, and that issue was later identified as a partial UCL tear. Surgery had seemed like a real possibility, and it was hard to picture Cruz contributing again in 2026.
For now, though, Cruz is taking a different path. Boone said he’ll take the “conservative route” with the injury, and Greg Joyce of The New York Post reported that surgery could still be on the table later.
Cruz is said to be feeling better and could even begin throwing in the next few days. Even so, that doesn’t really change the Yankees’ October picture.
The jump from Tommy John surgery discussions to game action in less than a month would be a massive ask.
The Yankees also had an outfield scare when Trent Grisham left tonight’s game with right hamstring discomfort. In the bottom of the second, Xander Bogaerts’ RBI single dropped in front of Grisham, who appeared to be running slowly. He was later seen speaking with the team trainer, and Heliot Ramos took over in right field in the bottom of the third while Spencer Jones moved to center.
That’s a situation worth watching because Grisham has already dealt with a right hamstring strain this season, missing three weeks in June. Before that injury, he carried a 113 wRC+ in 264 plate appearances.
Since returning on July 3, that number has slipped to 79 wRC+ in 219 plate appearances. If he needs time off again, Jones could pick up more center-field work, which may also serve as a preview of what his postseason role could look like.
In Other News...
Yankees May Be Facing A Giancarlo Stanton Reality Nobody Wanted
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Around the team, the bigger question is no longer just whether Stanton can get back on the field this season, but whether this is the point where the Yankees have to start planning for life without him. Some insiders and media voices are already wondering if his time in pinstripes is nearing its end, and if that proves to be the case, the lineup would need a different shape going forward. For a club built to contend, the possibility of losing one of its most feared bats creates both urgency and an offseason decision that could ripple through the rest of the roster. [Read more 🡒]
Yankees Ex Caught In Roster Squeeze As Pirates Prospect Returns
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Bethancourts exit is a reminder of how quickly the margins can shift for a player acquired in a minor league deal, especially one with a short runway to make an impression. The former Yankee was brought over from New York but never got into a regular-season game for Pittsburgh, leaving the club to make a choice that tells you where its priorities are right now, even if the full roster fallout is still to come. [Read more 🡒]
Former Yankees Minor Leaguer Just Took A Public Shot At Their Approach
Nick Torres, who recently went back to the Mexican League after a brief stop with the Yankees Double-A affiliate, put the organizations hitting development under a public spotlight this week. On social media, Torres contrasted the approach he saw in New Yorks system with the one he associates with the Mexican League, framing it as a difference between a focus on analytics and individual metrics on one side and a more traditional emphasis on winning and manufacturing runs on the other.
The critique lands in a system that has generally produced results on the field, at least in the minors. Yankees farm clubs have been among the better offensive groups in baseball, leading their affiliates in runs scored, home runs and RBIs, which makes Torres comments as much a challenge to philosophy as to production. Even so, his remarks add another layer to the ongoing conversation around how the Yankees develop hitters and whether their process looks different from the box score. [Read more 🡒]