Nothing gets some Yankees fans excited quite like the addition of a reliever picked up off the scrap heap.
While the team has plenty of star power for diehards to enjoy, minor moves for bullpen arms often leave a segment of fans salivating on social media. That’s because of Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake, who has earned the reputation of a whisperer for reclamation relievers.
The latest example of fans sharing this belief came when the Yankees claimed Michael Tonkin from the Mets on Thursday. A 34-year-old journeyman, Tonkin has a 4.44 ERA over 192 career games and a 6.00 mark over nine MLB innings this season.
Nothing special, yet some celebrated the move with memes featuring Blake.
The “Meet Matt Blake” meme comes from a video interview the Yankees shared when they hired the coach in 2019. The image, or just the words “Meet Matt Blake,” are commonly posted whenever the team acquires a pitcher that most people have never heard of.
Other images and even montages have been used to convey faith in Blake.
https://t.co/922OIhRjD4 pic.twitter.com/k0ubYwbpRz
— Baseball Noticer (@TheNoticingShow) March 31, 2024
sinker and slider guy? i’ve seen enough. https://t.co/xB1f8W3u1a pic.twitter.com/tpE8TaR2Xk
— p – gianna ᰔᩚ (@yanksfangii) April 25, 2024
Earlier this season, Blake told the Daily News that he knows about the memes and his online reputation. So does another member of his family.
“My mom is aware,” Blake said, a hint of embarrassment in his voice. “She sees that stuff on the blogs, Facebook, Twitter or wherever. She notices, when we pick somebody up, that the people think we’ll fix them.
“I’ve seen it, so that’s funny. But obviously there’s a lot of people that go into getting these guys and getting them in the right spot. I think it’s just funny how the narrative transpires.”
While Blake’s use of the word “narrative” would suggest that the memes are exaggerated, the best jokes contain a hint of truth.
The Yankees have made good use of unheralded relievers, among other pitchers, since the instructor’s arrival. Recent shining examples include Wandy Peralta and Ian Hamilton, but also lots of lesser names who played parts big and small.
This spring, Nick Burdi made the Yankees’ Opening Day roster after joining the team as a non-roster invitee. He recorded a 0.00 ERA over 6.1 innings before landing on the injured list with hip inflammation. Dennis Santana, another NRI, is in the bullpen as well. Hamilton found himself in a similar boat last year before becoming one of Aaron Boone’s go-to weapons.
“I never heard of that, but that’s pretty funny,” Hamilton said of the Blake memes. “He does his research for sure. He knows what he’s doing.”
The Yankees turn Ian Hamilton into an absolute dude, the Matt Blake lab strikes again.
— Max Greenfield (@GreenfieldMax18) May 6, 2023
Meanwhile, Burdi said that Blake – and the Yankees’ reputation for developing pitchers – was “one of the bigger reasons why we chose to sign here.” By “we,” Burdi was referring to John DeRouin, a coach at the University of Arizona who used to work with Blake at Cressey Sports Performance. Burdi and DeRouin train together.
“We just kind of knew how they valued pitching and shapes, metrics, all that stuff,” said Burdi, an oft-injured righty who can throw 100. “So [DeRouin] kind of made it a point to emphasize that when we were talking. It’s been a good decision so far.”
Then there is Clay Holmes, the Yankees’ biggest bullpen success story of the Blake era.
Acquired from the Pirates midway through the 2021 season, Holmes had a 5.57 ERA over 119.2 career innings for Pittsburgh. At the time, the public saw the trade as nothing more than an afterthought.
An All-Star in 2022, Holmes has been the Yankees’ primary closer since taking over the role from Aroldis Chapman that season. He has a 2.32 ERA and 53 saves over 165 games since becoming a Yankee.
Holmes’ career turn-around has certainly contributed to Blake’s reputation. While the righty didn’t know about the memes, he said that the Yankees’ clubhouse has similar expectations as fans when the team adds a new pitcher.
“You know when the Yankees go and they find somebody there’s usually a reason for it,” Holmes said. “Everybody’s always, at this point now, curious. Like, ‘Man, what are they gonna try to do here with this guy?'”
Holmes wanted to clarify that Blake is not a “one-man show,” and so did the pitching coach.
While Blake said that he provides some feedback on roster moves and pitchers he thinks the Yankees can help, he made sure to credit the front office, the pro scouting department, director of pitching Sam Briend, assistant pitching coach Desi Druschel, bullpen coach Mike Harkey and director of catching Tanner Swanson.
“It’s a big group of people,” Blake said. “It takes a lot of consistent coordination and communication to make sure everybody’s on the same page when you import a player.”
Holmes believes it’s the communication that has allowed the Yankees to find and develop diamonds in the rough like himself. Blake is part of that, but he’s not the only ingredient.
“It’s just very coherent from the minor leagues to the big leagues,” Holmes said. “It feels like everybody’s on the same page. They have a plan. They know what they like, and it’s communicated well. To me, it just creates an environment for transitions to be easier.
“They’ve created a really good process.”
