Yankees Listed ‘Best Fit’ for 29-Year-Old World Series Champion

The New York Yankees have not done much to address their bullpen issues this offseason.

The Yankees bolstered the group at the trade deadline last season, trading for David Bednar, Camilo Doval and Jake Bird, but their bullpen fell apart in the postseason. New York also lost multiple key relievers this offseason, with Devin Williams and Luke Weaver walking in free agency.

Aside from trading for 23-year-old Angel Chivilli, New York has not made many additions to its bullpen. With that in mind, Bleacher Report’s Zachary Rymer listed the Yankees as the “best fit” to land former Los Angeles Dodgers reliever Michael Kopech on Thursday.

“Michael Kopech is purely an upside play at this stage of his career,” Rymer wrote Thursday. “Heck, even staying healthy in 2026 would count as a win after knee and shoulder injuries kept him sidelined for almost all of 2025. And yet, Kopech sat at 97.5 mph on the fastball despite his physical issues last year. The hope must be that he can get back to his 2024 average of 98.7 mph, which helped make his heater one of the best in the game.

“The Yankees, meanwhile, were reportedly interested in Kopech in January, according to Jon Heyman of the New York Post. This was before they re-signed Paul Goldschmidt, but his $4 million salary shouldn’t be the last dollars they spend. If anything, they need Kopech in a bullpen that has lost Devin Williams and Luke Weaver and gotten nothing in the way of new additions. And in this brave new world, Kopech wouldn’t even have to worry about shaving his beard if he signed up to wear pinstripes.”

Kopech posted a blistering 1.54 ERA across 38 appearances with the Dodgers and is a World Series champion, but has been plagued by injuries throughout his career. Despite the risk, the Yankees need to bolster their bullpen, and Kopech’s upside makes him a desirable target.

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