Yankees reliever Paul Blackburn quickly could become their former reliever
Yankees relief pitcher Paul Blackburn reacts during the ninth inning against the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium on Saturday. Credit: Kathleen Malone-Van Dyke
Bye, bye Blackburn?
Pitcher Paul Blackburn, who gave up seven runs in the ninth inning of the Yankees’ ugly 12-1 loss to the Red Sox on Saturday, probably will not look back fondly on what is likely to be his only Yankees appearance.
Manager Aaron Boone said reliever Fernando Cruz (oblique strain) is expected to be activated off the injured list on Sunday or Monday.
If Blackburn, who was released by the Mets on Tuesday and signed with the Yankees on Thursday, is let go, his Yankees tenure will end with an 18.90 ERA.
Blackburn actually had thrown 2 1/3 scoreless innings before the ninth. With the Yankees trailing 5-1, the righthander gave up hits to five of the first seven batters as Boston increased its lead to 8-1.
With one out to go, Boone didn’t want to use another bullpen arm, so Blackburn was asked to wear it. And wear it he did.
On David Hamilton's grounder to short, Anthony Volpe made a sprawling catch but couldn’t throw to second for an inning-ending forceout because Jazz Chisholm Jr. was late covering the bag. Volpe threw late and high to first, with the ball sailing over first baseman Ben Rice as a run scored. It was scored a single and an error.
So there were runners on first and third. Blackburn went to 3-and-2 on Carlos Narvaez and decided to try a pickoff throw to first in a 9-1 game, but Rice was playing behind Hamilton. Blackburn saw that and threw to Rice well off the bag, but a pickoff throw to an unoccupied base is a balk. A run scored.
Narvaez hit the next pitch for a two-run homer to make it 12-1. After a walk, Blackburn finally got the last out of the inning.
Blackburn threw 71 pitches — two more than Yankees starter Will Warren.
“Volpe made an error, which was his first one in a few weeks,” Aaron Boone said. “Been playing well out there. Bad throw and then [Rice] not communicating well enough with a new player on the 3-2 count where Ben’s playing behind him. But the story is getting shut down, not generating enough offensively and then struggling to hold them down, obviously.”
Blackburn became the 19th player (and second this season) to make an appearance for both the Yankees and Mets in the same season, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. Rico Garcia also has pitched for both teams in 2025.
The rest of the list: Michael Tonkin (2024), Chris Young (2014), Angel Berroa (2009), Kelly Stinnett (2006), Jason Anderson and Armando Benitez (2003), Darren Bragg (2001), Allen Watson (1999), Josias Manzanillo (1995), Paul Gibson and Frank Tanana (1993), Tim Burke and Lee Guetterman (1992), Ray Burris (1979), Dave Kingman (1977), Hal Reniff (1967) and Bob Friend (1966).
Notes & quotes: Brendan Carr, the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission, threw out the ceremonial first pitch. Carr also was interviewed in the YES Network booth during the game. In late March, Carr was involved in settling a dispute between Comcast and YES that could have taken Yankees games off the air . . . Giants quarterback Russell Wilson attended the game.
Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.
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