Yankees' Justin Topa Promotion Hints at Unmissable Bullpen Concern

Justin Topa has seen better days. Coming off a 2025 season in which he pitched to a 3.90 ERA in 60 innings and was projected for a 4.07 ERA this year, according to FanGraphs, he was probably hoping for a better outcome than what happened. The LIU graduate struggled in May and was designated for assignment and released by multiple teams this year before landing with the New York Yankees on August 14.

On Monday, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reported that the Yankees are calling up Topa, who has made four appearances at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, sporting a 1.80 ERA and allowing one earned run in five innings.

For Topa, it's an opportunity to potentially help a contender despite an 8.05 ERA. For the Yankees, it's yet another sign that they're looking under every proverbial scrap heap around baseball to find pitching depth.

The organization makes a few of these signings a year, hoping to find magic in a bottle or have the pitcher reclaim what made them successful in better years, but during a season in which they had a quiet offseason and an incomplete trade deadline, it feels a little desperate. There were plenty of opportunities to help themselves, and they simply didn't. Maybe Topa becomes something, but if he doesn't, New York's bullpen will continue to get overworked.

It's not like the market was bare either. There were over 45 deals that involved a starter or reliever being moved after July 15th. It did feel like there were a lot of reports of the Yankees being in on Mason Miller, and when that didn't materialize, they just gave up on that avenue and moved in different directions. It didn't matter that plenty of teams were adding arms around them.

San Diego Padres closer reacts during the ninth inning in a game against the Minnesota Twins. — San Diego Padres relief pitcher Mason Miller was reportedly on the New York Yankees' radar leading up to the deadline, but no deal materialized. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

It's just hard to rationalize that when you see that, across town, the Mets were moving the likes of Huascar Brazobán, who could have been solid middle-inning relief, or Luke Weaver, who would have been the setup man to David Bednar. At a minimum, they should have walked away with a pitcher like Brazobán, and that would have made a big difference for a taxed bullpen.

Hoping a Topa lottery scratch-off hits because they were able to get the most out of guys like Paul Blackburn, Fernando Cruz, or Brent Headrick isn't something that they can totally rely on as they move into the final weeks of the season and into October. A good combination of more proven talent and reclamation projects would make for a deeper bullpen, and one that doesn't rely on the same three guys every night.

New York Yankees pitcher Paul Blackburn throws a pitch against the Chicago Cubs. — New York Yankees pitcher Paul Blackburn has done a good job out of the bullpen, but he and a couple of other guys need more help. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Getting the most out of Justin Topa

With Topa, the best-case scenario is that he returns to the type of pitcher that he was last year. This season, the only thing going right for him is his 57.4% groundball rate. Last season, he posted a 47.7% groundball rate and held batters to a 5.6% barrel rate.

Topa relied on soft contact, and that is exactly the type of pitcher he was in the minors. In Triple-A this season, the groundball pitcher held batters to an 86.1 MPH average exit velocity, a 4.5% barrel rate, and a 30.7% hard-hit rate.

If the Yankees get that out of Topa, it would be another success story. It's just hard to keep counting on guys like that to fill out your bullpen. It worked with a few relievers this season, but now they're very top-heavy, and they seem to be relying on the same few guys to get big outs.

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