MAKING A CASE FOR ADAM OTTAVINO

One thing I absolutely loved our 2017 and 2018 teams was our dangerous bullpen. There will be once noticeable difference with this season's bullpen though....no David Robertson. He played a key role in the Yankees success. He will no doubt be missed going forward, so who can they go after now to keep their bullpen as a strength?

Re-signing Zach Britton was a good start, but the Yankees will need more. Right now there is still a hole in the bullpen even with Aroldis Chapman and Dellin Betances. The Yankees need some more quality relievers to get the job done, especially after how unreliable Tommy Kahnle was last year.

The Yankees have been tied to Adam Ottavino for a while now. He's the guy who insists he would "strike Babe Ruth out every time," read more HERE. Clearly he isn't lacking any confidence or trying to short-sell his abilities to interested teams. His 2018 season was dominant, so his free agency couldn't have come at a better time. Teams are drooling over his 77.2 inning pitched, 36.3% strikeout rate, 11.7% walk rate, and 2.43 ERA. His strikeout rate is well above league average but was his 2018 the best it gets? Previous seasons aren't nearly this good.

If the Yankees sign Ottavino, they buy into his 2018 numbers being what he is truly capable of. He's only one year removed from a much different state line of 53.1 innings pitched, 25.9% strikeout rate, 16.1% walk rate, and 5.06 ERA. That's a big difference. He was as bad in 2017 as he was brilliant last season.

The Rockies also aren't known to be chasing to get him back. That's got to mean something, right? Ottavino had Tommy John surgery back in 2015. He returned in the summer of 2016 and showed no major struggles when he pitched. Based on that you would think he would come back in 2017 and build on that and continue to improve.

Instead, he posted the worst numbers of his career. The differences from his 2017 season and 2018 shouldn't be ignored if the Yankees are serious about him. I'm hesitant about Ottavino. He's 33 years old and had one dominant season. It's hard to sign a pitcher with confidence when he's getting up there in age and is looking for big money and years with his history.

If the Yankees could get him on a two-year deal I'd be in 100%, but that's very unlikely. He's also a National League pitcher who is untested in a large market like New York. Coors Field is a tough place to pitch in, but not all National League pitchers can handle the AL East, or handle the expectations of playing for the New York Yankees.

I want to be all-in on Ottavino. I know a lot of people are but the age and history are a concern. If the Yankees see something I don't and sign him I hope he does well. If he does, I will gladly admit I was wrong. The last thing I want is to see an area that was a strength become an area of weakness.

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa
BYB Managing Editor
Twitter: @nyprincessj