Ryan McMahon made a strong first impression in his New York Yankees debut, and the team isn’t slowing down in its search for more talent. In fact, they might be turning right back to where they found McMahon—the Colorado Rockies.
This time, though, it’s not about adding to the offense. The Yankees are reportedly eyeing a bullpen arm—specifically a reliever who’s appeared in 44 games this season for Colorado and holds a 4.05 ERA.
Despite already having quality arms in the bullpen, the Yankees are clearly still looking to upgrade. With the trade deadline approaching, there’s an opportunity to land cost-effective pitching help to bolster their MLB postseason push.
So who is the Rockies reliever the Yankees are interested in?
According to Brendan Kuty of The Athletic, New York was impressed with Jake Bird after facing him back in May. Bird showed strikeout potential, and as Kuty reports, he’s still under contract with the Rockies.
“Several Yankees came away impressed with Bird when he had two appearances against them in Colorado in late May, one player told The Athletic. The 29-year-old has the strikeout ability (10.5 per nine innings) that the Yankees surely would appreciate. Going into Saturday, Bird also had a 4.05 ERA (but also a 3.09 FIP) in 44 appearances. He won’t be a free agent until after the 2028 season, and it’s unclear how willing the Rockies would be to part with him if he could be part of future success.”
Bird may be coming from a struggling team, but the Rockies have clearly trusted him this year. He’s second only to Tyler Kinley in appearances among their pitching staff (48 games) and owns the second-best ERA among Colorado relievers.
see also
When is the 2025 MLB trade deadline? Date, time, top candidates and what’s on the line
