Yankees send down veteran starter, promote rookie to add bullpen depth

Ahead of the Yankees' afternoon contest against the Pirates, they announced that right-hander Cody Poteet would be demoted to Triple-A for Will Warren . Chris Kirschner of The Athletic initially reported that Warren had a locker in the clubhouse, and this move gives them a fresh arm to use who won't get any innings in the postseason. With the AL East locked up and the magic number for the first seed down to just 1 game, the have all but clinched every possible scenario in the season's final weekend.

Will Warren struggled as a starter earlier this year at the Major League level, so this could serve as valuable experience for the right-hander, and the rain in town could create a need for a bulk reliever.

Will Warren Called Up For Cody Poteet As Yankees Add Fresh Arm

Cody Poteet had pitched well in his most recent MLB outing, tossing three innings of one-run baseball with three strikeouts in relief against the Orioles. Likely unavailable for the final two games against Pittsburgh, the Yankees made the decision to option him for Will Warren, who is fully built up to provide innings and give some of their high-leverage weapons a rest ahead of the postseason.

Warren struggled mightily in five starts with the Yankees, posting a hideous 9.55 ERA although he did strikeout 25% of batters faced. The Yankees are hoping he can turn himself around in 2025 after experiencing some real struggles with his command at both the Minor League and Major League levels. The 25-year-old is one of their top pitching prospects and has above-average stuff, but it hasn't materialized for him yet and this could be a chance to finish his season strong.

The Yankees will take on the Pirates today at 1:05 PM as Luis Gil and Paul Skenes duel in a rookie showdown for the penultimate game of the regular season. The forecast does call for rain in New York City however, so this could create some complications for Gil and Skenes as they could run into some delays during the game. If so, this is where Warren could be of great value as it would allow the Yankees to avoid using Luke Weaver, Tim Hill, or Ian Hamilton in a situation where they're not needed.