One of the most important Yankees This October began its life in pinstripes as, among other things, a waiver request last September. Then the Yankees re-signed Luke Weaver over the winter with a rotation depth of $2 million, but after fine-tuning his fastball grip – with a little wisdom from Gerrit Cole – and an off-season “stumble” in his windup, Weaver has morphed into so much more now.
In fact, the right-handed reliever will likely be on the mound for some of the most crucial outs of the postseason as the Yankees attempt to return to the World Series for the first time since 2009. He could find himself in the postseason cauldron as soon as Saturday, when the Yankees’ AL Division Series begins at Yankee Stadium against the Royals or Orioles.
Even though Weaver, 31, knows he “surprised the world a little bit” with the season he had, he always believed in it, even through his turbulent career. He went from being a first-round pick to being a piece in a blockbuster trade to MLB’s leader in losses in 2020, to stints on six different teams and, now, his first taste of the postseason.
“I feel like this game is tough,” Weaver said. “This game has a lot of success and a lot of failure. In my opinion, failure definitely filled a lot of chapters. But it was for good reason: it prepares me for this moment, allows me to throw in a city like this, in a team as good as them.
“I definitely had confidence in myself, but it was very, very expected.”
Weaver, who had a 2.89 ERA in 62 games and held opponents to a .176 average during the regular season, had four saves in September after the Yankees stopped using Clay Holmes exclusively as the closest. But Weaver’s role may not be exactly defined in the postseason, an era where managers want to get to their bullpens quickly and multi-inning relievers can be a huge weapon, especially with every day of built-in rest in the playoffs.
Weaver, who has pitched the third-most innings of relief in the majors (84.0), has had 13 appearances of two or more innings and 31 where he had at least four outs this year.
When asked if Weaver would close, manager Aaron Boone replied: “We’ll see. I mean, he could be in the biggest moment in an important spot at seventh and I can’t take him to ninth. I would expect him to close, hopefully , some games for us, but he could end up in a different round, if that requires it.
It’s been an interesting year for the Yankee bullpen. Overall, the Yanks’ relief ERA was sixth in the Majors at 3.62, but the late game was an issue at times — and the pen ranked just 19th in FanGraphs’ version of WAR. Holmes saved 30 games, but he was also charged with 13 blown saves, the most in MLB and tied for the second-highest total in MLB history.
Weaver is ready for anything, any role. “I want to set the record straight. I don’t consider myself the closest,” he said. “I feel like I’m someone who goes out there and tries to get out there. So when the (pen) phone rings, I’m ready to go.”
Weaver was drafted 27th overall by the Cardinals in 2014 and made his MLB debut in 2016. After the 2018 season, he was part of the package sent by St. Louis to Arizona in the Paul Goldschmidt trade. In 2020, he was 1-9 for the Diamondbacks, the most losses among any pitcher in that pandemic-shortened season. He pitched for the Cardinals, D-Backs, Royals, Reds and Mariners before his baseball journey took him to the Bronx. Entering the 2024 season, he had a career ERA of 5.14.
Where did he find the mental courage to continue to persevere? Can it be learned? “Oh, it’s built in, my friend,” he said. “You get kicked in the teeth enough times and you have to get back up, don’t you?”
During the offseason, Weaver discovered that shortening his kick “allowed me to be efficient” without affecting his mid-90s fastball velocity. Cole had some ideas about grip alignment. Weaver’s fastball and it was “a big thing that helped me win more swings on it, on the heater, more swing and misses, less fouled pitches.”
Weaver’s whiff percentage (33.5%) and strikeout percentage (31.1%) are both among the highest seven percent in MLB, according to Statcast.
“He definitely performed well in the biggest moments of the regular season,” Boone said. “He’s a better pitcher than he’s probably ever been in his life and that’s a credit to him, for some of the adjustments he’s made and the way he’s accepted to go to the bullpen.
“He’s had an outstanding season and whatever role I’ve given him, he’s thrived and he, like a lot of our guys, loves to compete. And he loves action.
“We’re about to talk about it.”
