The Yankees made a flurry of roster moves ahead of Sunday afternoon’s series finale against the Toronto Blue Jays, activating Cody Bellinger from the injured list, sending Ryan Weathers to the IL with a left forearm flexor strain, and recalling pitcher Brendan Beck from Triple-A Scranton.
The return of Bellinger, who has been out since July 25th with a left hamstring strain, was anticipated for several days. The left fielder had begun a rehab assignment with the RailRiders on Thursday, and after one game as the designated hitter and one in the outfield, declared himself “ready to go” yesterday afternoon. In anticipation of the move, the Yankees sent Max Schuemann, himself recently recalled when Ryan McMahon went on the shelf with a left thumb sprain the other day, back to the minors last night.
Weathers going on the IL does not come as a surprise, either, as he left yesterday’s game in the fourth inning with left elbow discomfort. While speaking to reporters yesterday, Weathers expressed hope that he would be able to return this season, but the official diagnosis suggests that he faces an uphill battle: back in 2020, Dr. Christopher Ahmad published research indicating that pitchers missed an average of 117 days for a forearm strain — and that’s assuming the absence of an underlying UCL tear that will require Tommy John surgery. It’s not officially a season-ending injury, but at this point, the odds are against him.
As manager Aaron Boone hinted, Weathers’ only hope is that it’s a minor elbow barking and that he can at least return in a bullpen role.
Ryan Weathers will not throw for 2-4 weeks. Aaron Boone said “there’s a great chance” that Weathers will return this year “in some capacity,” which suggests a bullpen role.
— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) August 23, 2026To replace Weathers on the roster, the Yankees recalled Brendan Beck from Scranton.
The 27-year-old rookie has made two appearances for the big league club this season, one on May 7th, the other on July 4th. Neither went particularly well, as he has allowed seven runs on seven hits in 6.2 innings, walking five and striking out four. At this point, the Yankees have yet to announce their starters for the Astros series, it’s unclear exactly how the team will handle the rotation going forward. In theory, the team may be able to skip Weathers’ spot in the rotation thanks to tomorrow’s off day, using Beck as an extra long man in the bullpen until Max Fried returns to the rotation next weekend (assuming, of course, that Fried misses the minimum 15 days). They also can just roll with a bullpen game in that spot, employing Beck as the bulk pitcher. Elmer Rodríguez could see a return as well.
Prior to today’s game, the Yankees made the following roster moves:
•Returned INF/OF Cody Bellinger (#35) from his rehab assignment and reinstated him from the 10-day injured list.
•Recalled RHP Brendan Beck (#89) from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
•Placed LHP Ryan Weathers…
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