It appears as if Yankee fans won’t have to wait much longer to see Jacob Lindgren in the Bronx.
Joel Sherman of the New York Post tweeted that the 21-year old left-handed pitcher will be called up prior to Sunday’s finale against the Texas Rangers. Lindgren was the Yankees’ first draft choice in the 2014 draft (2nd round selection), and in just one season advanced all the way to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre.
I hear that with Pinder throwing 48 pitches today he will be sent down and Jacob Lindgren will be promoted Sunday #Yankees
— Joel Sherman (@Joelsherman1) May 23, 2015
Lindgren was rated as the club’s #9 overall prospect to start the season by MLBPipeline.com. In his 22 innings pitched so far, Lindgren posted a 1.23 ERA while striking out 29 batters. Throughout his 46.2 innings pitched in the minor leagues, the left-handed pitcher has posted 77 strikeouts, giving him a 14.8 strikeout per 9 innings rate.
After a brutal loss on Saturday afternoon, the Yankees needed to make a move to add a fresh arm to the bullpen. To make the roster spot available for Lindgren, the Yankees will option Branden Pinder to the minor leagues. Pinder was used heavily on Saturday, throwing 48 pitches in his three innings of work.
Adding Lindgren not only gives the Yankees a chance to see what one of their young prospects can do, but it also adds another left-handed pitcher into the mix. With Andrew Miller getting most of the team’s save opportunities, Lindgren will join Chasen Shreve and Justin Wilson as the team’s other left-handed options out of the bullpen.
With a crop of young talented prospects within the organization, it’s nice to see the Yankees giving one of them a shot in this situation. Lindgren is very young, but it could be a move that can pay off nicely for the Bronx Bombers, who really could use the added bullpen depth.
