Ryan Yarbrough threw down another amazing start — 6 innings of 2-hit, 1-run ball, striking out 7 and walking 1, to lead the Yanks to a 5-1 win over the Angels in LA on a Monday, Memorial Day evening.
Anthony Volpe tripled in 3 runs in the 4th to give NY a 4-1 lead, Austin Wells hit a sac fly to add an insurance run in the 8th, and the Yankee bullpen of Yerry De Los Santos, Mark Leiter Jr., and Luke Weaver pitched 3 innings of shutout ball.
But the story was Yarbrough, the 33-year-old, 6’5 lefty that the Yanks snatched up after Toronto released him in March, when he opted out of his contract because they slated him to start the season in the minor leagues. Yarbrough pitched well for Toronto at the end of last season, but became a free agent and signed a minor-league deal with the Jays in February, expecting to make their major league roster. He pitched well in Spring training.
“Really fun to watch go at it,” said manager Aaron Boone afterwards about Yarbrough. “(Zach) Neto really stung one to open the game with the homer. First 2 innings, (they) took some pitches — I think he was over 40 pitches for the first 2 innings — but just kind of navigated his way and got real efficient. To be able to give us 6 strong like that — great tone setter for the rest of the series.”
“He’s always real close there, and kind of living on the edges,” said Boone when asked how Yarbrough was able to get more efficient after the first 2 innings. “I just like the presence he has on both sides of the plate and his ability to change speeds all the time. You still see him step on some 4 seamers sometimes to keep them honest; I thought the cutter was real good tonite; but just the presence on both sides and the deception that he has. He’s fun to watch.”
NY improves to 33-20, in 1st in the AL East by 6 games. The Angels fall to 25-28.
1. Yarbrough’s Back Story
Yarbrough is the famed “Opener” of the Tampa Bay Rays — one of the primary pitchers the Rays used to start the movement of having a reliever “open” a game, pitch a few innings, and then be relieved by other relievers on a “bullpen day”. The strategy — born a little bit out of necessity as good starters are expensive — was that the hitters never saw a pitcher more than 2 times in an outing.
Yarbrough went 16-6 3.91 in his rookie season in 2018 at age 26 — ‘opening’ 6 games, then went 11-6 4.13 in 2019, opening 14 games. Then came COVID and a 1-4 3.56 campaign, and then two less-successful years in 2021 and 2022 when he went 9-7 5.11 (21 opens) and 3-8 4.50 — after which he became a free agent and Tampa let him walk.
He signed as a free agent with Kansas City in 2023 and spent a half year there — doing well — before being traded to the Dodgers for two prospects (Derlin Figueroa and Devin Mann). He did pretty well with the Dodgers in 2023 and the first half of 2024, where he was used primarily as a reliever, but was traded to Toronto at the trade deadline last summer for Kevin Kiermaier. Toronto used him exclusively as a reliever.
Yarbrough was 5-2 3.19 combined with the Dodgers and Blue Jays in 2024; in 98.2 innings he allowed only 70 hits.
So imagine his chagrin when he was only offered a minor-league deal from Toronto in the winter. And then imagine his double chagrin when he pitched well in Spring training but was still scheduled to start the season in the minors.
The Yankees SNATCHED him up — signing him to a 1-year deal at $2M, and now he is in the starting rotation of the 1st place team in the AL East. Meanwhile Toronto is 7 games back at 26-27 and could use a pitcher like Yarbrough, as Bowden Francis and Easton Lucas have struggled as the 4th and 5th starters (Kevin Gausman, Jose Berrios, and Chris Bassitt are Toronto’s top 3 in their rotation).
2. Yarbrough Great Again
Shortstop Zach Neto hit a 440-foot homer to center off Yarbrough to start the bottom of the 1st, but after that Yarbrough rolled — retiring the next 13 batters in a row on mostly groundouts and strikeouts.
Ryan Yarbrough Painting. ?️? pic.twitter.com/8EjZIkqcJI
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) May 27, 2025
By the bottom of the 5th the Yanks had given Yarbrough a 4-1 lead. He allowed a 1-out infield single in the 5th, then retired 5 more in a row — throwing a 1-2-3 inning in the 6th to cap off the tremendous performance.
Yeah, Yarbs ?
Presented by @Delta pic.twitter.com/jHSiHtFH26
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) May 27, 2025
Yarbrough is now 2-0 3.06.
3. Volpe 3-RBI Triple Puts Yanks Up 4-1
The Angels started 6’7 righty Jack Kochanowicz, and he retired the first 9 Yankees in a row to have a Perfect Game going through 3 innings.
But in the top of the 4th, the Yanks got to him and good.
Ben Rice led off with a single to left, Trent Grisham singled to center, and Aaron Judge reached on an infield single to 3rd, to load the bases with nobody out.
Cody Bellinger worked a 4-pitch walk to force in a run and tie the game 1-1.
But the big 6’7 righty struck out Jasson Dominguez, and the Yankee rally was in jeopardy.
But Anthony Volpe came through — ripping a 96-MPH fastball for a double to center, clearing the bases for a 4-1 Yankee lead.
Bases-clearing double for @Volpe_Anthony ? pic.twitter.com/tebDQ2WO5k
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) May 27, 2025
Good too because after Volpe’s triple, Kochanowicz went back to being tough — pitching shutout ball into the 7th.
4. De Los Santos Good
Yerry De Los Santos relieved Yarbrough and pitched a 1-2-3 inning in the 7th, striking out 2 swinging on his 88-MPH changeup.
5. Wells Insurance Sac Fly in 8th
NY got an insurance run off reliever Connor Brogdon in the top of the 8th.
Aaron Judge walked, Cody Bellinger singled to right, The Martian got on due to an infield error to load the bases with nobody out.
This time Anthony Volpe struck out, but Austin Wells came through with a sac fly to left for a 5-1 Yankee lead.
6. Leiter Good
De Los Santos allowed a leadoff single in the 8th, then got another strikeout and was relieved by Mark Leiter Jr. who allowed a single to put 1st and 3rd in a 5-1 game.
But Leiter struck out Neto and got a ground out to end the inning.
7. Weaver the Save
Luke Weaver pitched the 9th — fly out, walk, line out, infield single, pop out for the old ballgame.
Etcetera
- Aaron Judge went 1-2 with 2 walks and is at .398.
- Cody Bellinger went 2-3 and is at .268
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