Pitcher Cut By Red Sox In Spring, Lands With Yankees On Free Agent Deal

It's not often a player puts on a Boston Red Sox jersey and the NY Yankees pinstripes in the same year, but that will be the case for veteran high-leverage reliever Adam Ottavino, after signing with the Bronx Bombers on Tuesday.

Yanks bring back Adam Ottavino pic.twitter.com/epjjE84fsr
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) April 1, 2025

Ottavino, in fact, has done nothing but bounce between New York and Boston for the last six years of his big league career. In 2019, he joined the Yankees and posted a tremendous 1.90 ERA across 66 innings out of the bullpen. 2020 was a down year in the Bronx for him, and he left for the Red Sox in 2021 where he acted as part closer and recorded 11 saves.

In 2022, Ottavino headed back to New York, but this time with the Mets, where he spent the next three seasons. He compiled a 3.14 ERA over that time in Queens, with a 1.15 WHIP, 10.4 K/9 and 16 saves.

The 39-year-old headed back to Boston this February on a minor league contract, but he exercised an opt-out on March 23 to become a free agent. He had posted an ugly 10.80 ERA in five spring innings with the BoSox.

He has now been added to the Yankees roster, and will bolster the bullpen from the right side.

Last season with the Mets, Ottavino limited opposing right-handed batters to a stingy slash line of .199/.278/.257. He also stranded 15 of his 20 inherited runners.

Over the course of his 14-year career, he's also pitched with the St. Louis Cardinals for a year and the Colorado Rockies for seven seasons. He has a total of 46 saves, while posting a 3.49 career ERA, while being consistently tough as nails against RH hitters, holding them to a .206/.289/.312 slash line.

In his two previous seasons with the Yankees, Ottavino posted an overall 2.76 ERA.