New York Yankees reliever Luke Weaver made an earlier-than-expected return Friday off the injured list after hurting his hamstring. However, his return to live action did not go well, as he gave up two runs and two hits in less than an inning, including the go-ahead home run as the Yankees lost 5-3 to the Baltimore Orioles.
Despite the poor results, Weaver had a somewhat positive outlook while speaking to the media after the game.
Luke Weaver Says He’s Healthy
Weaver met with the local media after his poor performance against the Orioles and said he feels great. Weaver added that “the velocity and pitches were there.” That should give Weaver confidence that he’ll get things back on track quickly.
Luke Weaver was asked if he felt okay physically after his outing tonight:
“I feel great. The only thing that hurts is my heart and my mind.” pic.twitter.com/2UNeITv1mR
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) June 21, 2025
Weaver was projected to miss at least four weeks after suffering a strained hamstring but returned in less than three weeks. His poor performance may lead some fans to question whether he came back too soon despite feeling healthy.
Even with the poor outing in his return, Weaver still has an outstanding 1.71 ERA with 25 strikeouts in 26 innings. Despite not having a high-velocity fastball, Weaver has tremendous command, which allows his fastball and changeup combination to be successful.
Luke Weaver has a 0.45 ERA. It’s May 14th.
My closer.
pic.twitter.com/Aya3CBlitS— Chris (@Chris_NYY28) May 14, 2025
Opposing batters are hitting just .103 against Weaver’s changeup with a whiff rate of nearly 40%. Weaver perfectly spots his changeup just below the strike zone to both right-handed and left-handed hitters. The Yankees’ loss to the Orioles leaves them only one game ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League East standings, which presents an interesting situation with Weaver and closer Devin Williams.
Weaver’s early season emergence was especially important given Williams’ struggles since he arrived in New York via off season trade. Weaver replaced Williams as the closer after Williams had a 10.00 ERA at the end of April. However, Williams has been outstanding over the last month, and with the Yankees now in a tight division race, he may get the majority of closer opportunities once again while Weaver returns to a setup role.
Devin Williams records three strikeouts in the ninth! pic.twitter.com/chyUHDKkfw
— Talkin’ Yanks (@TalkinYanks) June 19, 2025
Yankees manager Aaron Boone believes that he now has two All-Star closers, which is a great luxury to have. There’s also plenty of depth in the bullpen with Fernando Cruz, Tim Hill, Mark Leiter Jr, and flamethrower Jonathan Loaisiga, who recently returned from Tommy John surgery.
Jonathan Loáisiga 🇳🇮 recorded his 5th consecutive scoreless relieve.
He is in shape right now in the Yankees bullpen.
— Fernando Rayo (@Rayo2Fer) June 21, 2025
The Yankees have had a top-10 bullpen all season, and that should continue while Weaver works to regain his pre-injury form.