| Douglas Benton. 17th January, 2011 - 10:53 pm
 Already armed with the game?s best closer in Mariano Rivera, Brian Cashman and the Yankees added further depth to their bullpen in signing former Tampa Bay closer Rafael Soriano to a three-year, $35 million contract. The 31-year-old right-hander will serve as the eighth inning set-up man and potential future closer.
Soriano has some of the best overall stuff coming out of the bullpen though his strikeout numbers took a dip in coming over to Tampa Bay in 2010. After battling injuries and inconsistency, Soriano burst through in 2009 while with the Braves to post 27 saves, a 2.97 ERA and 102 strikeouts to just 27 walks in 75.2 innings. His control was still good in 2010 with 14 walks issued in 62.1 innings, but he struck out just 57 hitters while posting dominant numbers of 45 saves and a 1.73 ERA.
With the talent to be a closer on a playoff team, the fact the Yankees have him as a set-up man just strengthens the bullpen. Not only does it give New York a much stronger option in the eighth to build the bridge to Rivera, but also slots the other relievers back an inning to make them better option. For a team with the offensive power the Yankees have, a good bullpen is a major plus in late innings.
However, with the return of Andy Pettitte in question, should the Yankees have been targeting more starting pitching since it is more of a pressing issue than the bullpen? It is better to take the best option than one out of necessity and in this case, Soriano is a more worthwhile investment.
A constant characteristic of the championship Yankee teams during this run over the past 15 years has been very good relief arms. Rivera is still dominant in the ninth and with Soriano in the fold; you now have the best set-up in the eighth. He pitched on a division winner last year and will handle the New York scene fine.
Grade for New York: A-
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