Yankees' Stephen Ridings to Begin Rehab Assignment Soon, Return This Season Still Possible

There's still a chance that Stephen Ridings can make his first appearance of the year with the Yankees before the end of the regular season.

ANAHEIM — With the Yankees limping through the month of August, managing a barrage of injuries to their pitching staff, one forgotten arm with plenty of potential is finally healthy again, inching closer to his return.

Right-hander Stephen Ridings has been progressing in his throwing program, transitioning from bullpens to live sessions, according to Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake. The next step for the 6-foot-8 reliever will be to take the mound in a rehab game with one of New York's minor league affiliates, his first in-game action in over a year.

"He's trending in the right direction, his stuff is rounding back into shape," Blake told Sports Illustrated's Inside The Pinstripes during New York's series against the Athletics in Oakland this past weekend. "Hopefully we get him back into some games here soon so we can keep assessing where he's at."

Ridings has been one of New York's longest-tenured players on the injured list this year, placed on the 60-day IL back on April 5 with what the team defined as right shoulder impingement syndrome. It certainly seems like Ridings has been battling more than that, though.

"It was a host of shoulder stuff that we were trying to pinpoint and some back stuff, too," Blake added. "So it was kind of a moving target for a little while, largely around the shoulder."

Blake's latest comments come after the pitching coach told NJ Advance Media a few weeks ago that the 27-year-old flamethrower nearly needed thoracic outlet surgery. During spring training, months after he was added to the 40-man roster for the first time, Ridings told Inside The Pinstripes that he slipped a disk in the offseason, a shoulder injury that kept him from contributing during his first big-league camp.

Now, Ridings is throwing without pain and putting himself in a legitimate position to help at the big-league level before the end of this season.

"He's earned the right to say he's a part of this group, when healthy," Blake said. "It's just a matter of taking it day by day to get to a spot where he's in the conversation and then kind of sorting it out from there."

It feels like a distant memory at this point, but Ridings' first impression in pinstripes was electrifying. Four of his five outings with the Yankees in 2021 were scoreless (1.80 ERA in five innings pitched). The reliever was blowing hitters away with his blistering fastball—a pitch that touched triple digits—and his filthy slider, striking out seven of the 20 batters he faced.

That makes Ridings' injury-plagued campaign even more frustrating. Nobody wants to miss an extended period of time with an injury, but Ridings has the stuff to contribute and help this team win, especially in a bullpen ravaged by injuries. Plus, he has minor league options remaining, a source of roster flexibility.

The clock is ticking for Ridings and all other injured assets looking to return before the end of the 2022 season. New York has just over 30 games remaining and the organization's affiliates are approaching the end of their regular season schedules as well.

As much as New York could benefit from adding a player like Ridings to the bullpen right now—he's one of 11 different pitchers on the Yankees' 40-man roster currently sidelined on the injured list—the coaching staff must still proceed with next season and beyond in mind. Is there a point in the year where it becomes too late for a pitcher to still be ramping up? The same conversation is going on for someone like left-hander Zack Britton, who is working his way back from Tommy John surgery and recently started a rehab assignment.

"Obviously it was all stuck in neutral for a while [with Ridings]," Blake explained. "Now that we're gaining some traction and he's getting to face hitters again, we just want him to finish this season on a high note. Whether that's with us, whether that's in the minor leagues, just finish healthy and set himself up for a good offseason."

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