The Yankees have agreed to minor league contracts with right-hander Art Warren and first baseman/outfielder Jake Bauers, as first indicated on the transactions log at MiLB.com. Warren’s contract is a two-year minor league deal that includes an invitation to Major League Spring Training in 2024, I’m told.
Warren, 30 in March, spent the past two seasons with the Reds and is expected to miss the 2023 season after undergoing surgery to repair the UCL in his pitching elbow back in September. Given that lengthy recovery period, the Reds non-tendered him earlier in the offseason. He’ll now latch on with a new club in hopes of rehabbing his arm and pitching his way into the Yankees’ bullpen plans in 2024, when he’s back at full strength.
While the 2022 season wasn’t a good one for Warren — 6.50 ERA, career-worst 13.3% walk rate and 1.50 HR/9 — it’s fair to wonder how much his elbow’s health (or lack thereof) contributed to those struggles. Warren’s average fastball sat at 95.3 mph with Cincinnati in 2021 but dipped to 93.6 mph in 2022, and his overall results in a healthy 2021 showing were outstanding. The 6’3″, 230-pound righty parlayed a big strikeout rate in Triple-A into a Major League look with the Reds and delivered a 1.29 ERA with an eye-popping 41.5% strikeout rate in 21 innings of work. Only four pitchers (min. 20 innings) managed to top Warren’s 19.2% swinging-strike rate in 2021: Liam Hendriks, Raisel Iglesias, Josh Hader and Jacob deGrom. Suffice it to say, when healthy, there’s plenty of intrigue surrounding Warren’s raw stuff.
Warren didn’t get a look in the Majors until his age-26 season with the Mariners, in part due to injuries, and he didn’t pitch in 2020 due to the canceled minor league season. The recent elbow issue will further cut into his opportunities, and he’ll be 31 by the time he has a legitimate chance to make the Yankees’ roster in 2024. If he makes the team at that point, he’ll be controllable for five years before he can become a free agent. For now, he won’t earn service time on the minor league deal but will be able to rehab at the Yankees’ facilities and with their training and medical staff.
As for Bauers, it’ll be his second stint with the Yankees, who signed him to a minor league deal last offseason as well and ultimately traded him to the Reds in exchange for cash over the summer. The 27-year-old former top prospect didn’t crack the big league roster with either club, hitting .226/.352/.406 with the Yankees’ Triple-A club and just .135/.276/.271 with the Reds’ top affiliate.
Bauers has appeared in parts of three Major League seasons, spending time with Tampa Bay, Cleveland and Seattle, but he’s managed a tepid .213/.307/.348 batting line in 1126 plate appearances. He’ll give the Yankees a left-handed depth option at first base and left field down in Scranton.
Why get that one stud, when you can sign two nobody’s?
You can do both. It is not an either/or.
If $300k keeps the Yankees from getting Rodon then they should probably just slash their payroll to Oakland levels.
Exactly right captain . This is why cashman was resigned.
Carlos who?
Warren not bad actually. Not an end of the game guy but will help get you there more often than not.
Art Warren was good in 2021. Minor league contract and regaining health could make this a smart pickup.
Art Warren is a fantastic depression-era name. I like it!
Remember when Bauer was a top 100, can’t miss prospect for the Rays? Guess he missed.
I’d be curious to see what percentage of top 100 prospects each year go on to become MVPs, all-stars, MLB regulars, below replacement level players, etc.
Remember when Torres was the overall #1 cant miss prospect? They were talking about him like they were already engraving his plaque at Cooperstown. He has been mostly solid but nowhere near where they said his ceiling would be. I remember seeing his smallish hands and wondering how he was going to get the bat control to hit to all fields. I’m trying to remember that guy from the Phillies who was a cant miss prospect. Dominick Brown maybe? Joba? The Yankee Killer B’s? Then you get guys like Brett Gardner and Nestor Cortes. Barely made prospect lists but turned into solid regulars. It’s why trading prospects never really bothers me. You never know who is going to adjust to MLB and who is going to flop. Out of the latest batch of prospects I think Volpe has the best chance to flop. His defense is pretty meh and I can see missed plays getting in his head. Really wish he would have been the trade bait last year and not every decent nearly ready pitcher they had.
Steve are you saying the 2023 season won’t be a good one for Warren and projecting a 6.50 ERA while he is on the IL?
Guessing typo.
Yeah maybe for Will not Art.
Typo indeed. Thanks.
That said, I can confidently predict that Warren will not allow an earned run in 2023.
Cashman always gets his relievers. One area where he is in fact really good is building bullpens. Taking fliers on guys is fine…… but we do still have those pesky LF, SP, 3B positions.
@Clipper. Quite so. In this case quantity, instead of quality
Warren is decent quality, actually.
Did you forget Clip, we have hicks, donaldson and IKF. Those positions are filled!
Clip, drop me a line sometime soon friend. I’ll know it’s you 😉
scubaville@protonmail.com
Cashman winning the minor league FA market.
Yankees with no changes are a 95+ win team that will be in the playoffs. Lack of hot bats and dominant arms has kept them from winning on that stage. The talent is already on the team, it’s the performance in that time period that goes flat. Maybe Judge needs to be Mr November before he becomes Captain and Cole needs to be dominant through the playoffs before he is a true Ace. The rest of the team needs to be clutch. Luis Sojo, Jose Vizcaino, Charlie Hayes and so many more average players came up clutch when the Yankees were champions. The talent is there, time to step up
Warren…that’s a weird way to spell Rodon.
ive said it before, all the yes network bs and the nypost reooets about hal closing the deal for judge was to indoctrinate the fan base to believe that Hal wants to spend money. The front office is afraid the fans won’t tune in or won’t attend games. The only reason they signed judge to that contract was to keep ticket holders coming back. It has nothing to do with championships. MLB uses the media as a mouthpiece the same way government does.
As soon as judge was signed instantly you started to hear that Hal wants to keep the payroll under 273M. You fans have been duped once again. Now it’s back to the same penny pinching, trash can trading BS. Sad thing is the fans don’t have the sack to stop attending and watching, so in all actuality, the fans are to blame.
Nobody was duped or fooled. This is a no-brainer. And obvious to all.
Oh Nooooooooo keep the payroll under $273m?!? HOW WILL THEY CONTEND NOW?!
I get a feeling the Yankees miss the playoffs in 2023.
No, especially not with the disastrous NFL-playoff model. But, that aside, they have not improved the team at all. In fact, one can argue they are worse right now than last season. So, an earlier elimination is not out of the question.
Can’t believe Jake Bauers is still bouncing around.
Warren will always be remembered as the Sandlot Game MVP. He’s got a great personality.
Yanks are good with relievers so it’s not out of the question they could get some mid innings out of Warren this year.
Yankees should take a long look at Profar. Batting left shift/no shift 2022:
With shift – .643 OPS
No shift – .838 OPS
xHR in 2022 Yankee Stadium 20
He plays multiple positions and shouldn’t preclude re-signing 10D.