Camilo Doval's Struggles Have Had a Ripple Effect on the Yankees' Bullpen

Camilo Doval hasn't just hurt himself with his poor play, but he has also altered the Yankees' game plan every night because of it.

Camilo Doval's performance has become an unnecessary distraction for the Yankees. | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Has anybody seen Camilo Doval lately? It feels like he has disappeared from the face of the Earth. Doval has appeared in 12 games for the Yankees in 2026. Yet that feels like a lot, because there haven't been many instances when manager Aaron Boone walked over to the mound, yanked a starter or reliever, and asked them to recall Doval from the bullpen.

It's hard to blame Boone, either. Doval has been bad.

Doval has not appeared in the same series twice since early April, when the Rays swept the Yankees. Before then, the last time they used him more than once was in his homecoming against the San Francisco Giants. His five most recent appearances have come in five different series, and his biggest gap in usage came earlier this month.

The Yankees haven't been able to trust Camilo Doval consistently this season. | Cary Edmondson-Imagn Images

Doval came into that heavyweight fight between the Yankees and Angels, and in 1 1/3 innings of work, he allowed two earned runs. The Yankees didn't use him for another 12 days after that. He came into a game against the Astros and posted a scoreless outing.

If there was any hope about Doval getting on track after his Houston game, he had another ugly game against the Rangers thereafter. The Yankees won that one, but he came in and gave up a homer despite striking out two.

In the year, Doval has a 6.97 ERA. In 10 1/3 innings of work, he has struck out 11 and walked just two batters, but he has also allowed eight earned runs and three homers. His biggest issue throughout his career was walks, and now that that's cleaned up, giving up the long ball is his flaw.

Bullpen is in flux

The issue with Doval falling further down the trust tree is that it has thrown the bullpen into flux. There is no true setup man in the eighth inning to bridge the gap to David Bednar, who's in the middle of an up-and-down performance.

That wasn't more evident than in the most recent series with the Rangers. They did win it, but against tougher competition, it's hard to trust the process with Fernando Cruz pitching in the eighth twice and Tim Hill getting the nod once. The two did walk out of those games unscathed, but it's easy to see how it could have swung the other way.

In game one, when Boone went to Hill in the eighth, he walked two batters, and with two men on, he got Corey Seager to ground out. It was a sharply hit ground ball, coming off his bat at 102.9 MPH.

The next day, Cruz came into the eighth. Josh Jung singled, and Seager walked. He was then able to make a spectacular play from his back to get Jung out at third. He then struck out Jake Burger. It was another instance where the setup man got himself in and out of trouble, which has never been a long-term solution in baseball.

Fernando Cruz somehow gets the out at third base! 🤯 pic.twitter.com/ngJ5iPZjua

— MLB (@MLB) April 29, 2026

Cruz came in game three, with the Yankees down 2-0, but that 8th inning was without its drama. Joc Pederson singled, and Cruz went on to strike out two batters.

Ripple effect across the team

The above isn't to say that Cruz and Hill are bad. They're one of the few bright spots of a bullpen that feels like it's on shaky ground. The two of them, for all their success, should not be setup guys. They are most valuable in the fifth, sixth, and seventh innings. Hill, in particular, is great to use in a pinch if there are runners on and you have to pull a starter early. He has left 90.9% of the runners he has inherited on base this season.

Doval's struggles have created a ripple effect, with Boone using guys in more prominent roles than he likely feels comfortable with. On top of that, the Yankees got it in their heads to have two long men with Ryan Yarbrough and Paul Blackburn. That further handcuffs them.

The Yankees need Doval to pick up. His pitching as poorly as he has doesn't just hurt his standing among the Yankees rank-and-file. It has completely altered Boone's game plan every night.

Of course, this is a Brian Cashman issue more than anything. It's his problem to fix, but how he does it and how soon it happens remains to be seen.