Former Yankees Reliever Agrees to Deal With St. Louis Cardinals

The New York Yankees are still searching for additional arms this offseason.

Whether that is for their starting rotation or to add to their bullpen, the front office has been linked to multiple pitchers throughout the winter.

Marcus Stroman was a nice pick up for them, adding another ace-level starter to pair with Gerrit Cole. Questions still persist about how effective Carlos Rodon will be coming off a disappointing season that was marred by injury.

That’s one of the reasons why Blake Snell has been such a hot topic.

The Yankees offered him a contract, but it was not the same financial package that he was looking for, so he’s still a free agent with the possibility another team can swoop in and sign him.

As they are searching for bullpen arms, they let one reliever who was with them last year out of the building, and now, he reportedly has found a new home.

According to Robert Murray of FanSided, Keynan Middleton has agreed to a deal with the St. Louis Cardinals, pending a physical.

The right-hander was acquired by New York in August 2023 via a trade with the Chicago White Sox. They shipped out 22-year-old minor league starter Juan Carela to get back the reliever.

Middleton appeared in 12 games for the Yankees and pitched well for them, recording an ERA of 1.88 across 14 1/3 innings pitched with 17 strikeouts.

It’s surprising New York didn’t pursue the 30-year-old more in free agency. He’s spent the past seven years playing in the MLB, posting an ERA of 3.84 across 205 appearances. His ERA+ of 113 suggests he’s 13 percentage points better than the league average.

The Yankees will now have to continue searching elsewhere.