Matt Bowman is returning to the Yankees on a minor league contract for 2023, per his MLB.com transactions log.
And maybe he’ll finally actually be able to pitch for them at some level following numerous stops and starts related to an elbow injury that was repaired via Tommy John surgery back in September 2020. The 31-year-old right-hander hasn’t appeared in any MLB-affiliated games since 2019, when he had a solid run as a member of the Reds’ bullpen.
Originally drafted by the Mets in 2012, Bowman made his MLB debut with the Cardinals in 2016 and holds a career 4.02 ERA with 149 strikeouts in 181 1/3 big league innings. When healthy, he can be an effective soft-contact-inducing reliever courtesy of an arsenal that tends to generate a lot of vertical and horizontal movement. During that 2019 stint with Cincinnati, Bowman held opposing hitters to a .212 batting average and .622 OPS with runners in scoring position. His career groundball rate sits at 56.6 percent.
He is probably going to be ticketed for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre out of Yankees camp, but Bowman can put himself in position for an in-season callup to the Bronx if his health simply cooperates.
