The New York Yankees sign southpaw Ryan Buchter to minors deal

Lefty relief pitcher Ryan Buchter has signed up to be the newest member of the New York Yankees’ Alternate Site reinforcement squad.

Ryan Buchter chose free agency over a trip to the Los Angeles Angels’ Alternate Site. Almost immediately after hitting the market, the 33-year-old signed with the New York Yankees.

His new team promptly shipped him off to join their own battalion of rostered backups in Scranton.

The Yankees announced that they’d signed Buchter to a minor league deal via Twitter on Thursday. According to the tweet, the two parties had reached an agreement on Sept. 7.

On 9/7, the Yankees signed LHP Ryan Buchter to a minor league contract, added him to the 60-man roster, and assigned him to the Alternate Site.

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) September 10, 2020

The Angels informed the world Buchter was a free agent on Sept. 6, per the team’s PR Twitter account.

Additionally, LHP Ryan Buchter has elected free agency in lieu of accepting an outright assignment to the Alternate Training Site.

— Angels PR (@LAAngelsPR) September 6, 2020

Buchter has an impressive career on paper, posting a 2.90 ERA across 220 innings, all tossed in relief. He was 2-0 with a 4.50 ERA in six innings for the Halos this season.

The Bombers are the 10th MLB organization to employ Buchter since the Washington Nationals drafted him in 2005, per Baseball-Reference.

He debuted briefly with the Atlanta Braves in 2014. He went on to make significant pen contributions to the San Diego Padres, Kansas City Royals, Oakland Athletics, and the Angels.

Buchter is much-needed depth for a Yankees’ relief corps that faces its sixth doubleheader of the season on Friday.

In New York’s last double dip, the team’s pitching staff was stretched so thin that Clarke Schmidt had to make his MLB debut in a sketchy spot. The 24-year-old prospect entered late in the game with two runners on and a one-run lead.

Schmidt, a starter by trade, blew the save and still had to finish off the loss.

The Yankees end the 2020 season with 17 games in 17 days, so they will likely call on Buchter soon. If he impresses, and if the Yankees live to see October, Buchter may even grab his first postseason experience.