The Yankees have signed LaTroy Hawkins to a 1 year, $3.75 million contract. This was a rare affordable contract for a veteran reliever. After a few shaky years, Hawkins had a bit of a renaissance last season in Colorado, putting up a 3.42 ERA in 55.1 innings of work.
There is no guarantee this will work out. Hawkins has been a case study in showing just how volatile reliever performance can be from year to year. The Yankees have a thin bullpen right now. Hawkins has an above average fastball and does not walk many hitters. He also improved his secondary stuff last year to post a 3.06 grounder to flyball ratio. This might be an anomaly, but it also could be an indication that he has reinvented himself. He is a decent bet to replace Luis Vizcaino’s production at least in a 6th or 7th inning role. Instead of giving Vizcaino a 3 or 4 year deal, the Yanks only have to dish out a 1 year contract and get a Draft pick for letting Luis walk.
This team has a number of options in terms of relief arms. A few need to step up to give the club a quality relief corps. The more men in the mix, the better the chance of finding quality relievers. Hawkins is worth the chance, given the cheapness of the contract.
