Former Yankee Fan Favorite Signs With Rangers

The last active member of the 2009 New York Yankees is looking to win a second ring. On Thursday, ESPN’s Jeff Passan reported that relief pitcher David Robertson has signed a one-year deal with the Texas Rangers, ranging between $11-12 million. The deal is still pending a physical.

With the Yankees currently looking to improve their bullpen, they missed out on quite a familiar face. The now 38-year-old reliever pitched for the Yankees for nine total seasons across two stints, and was fantastic throughout; in addition to winning the 2009 World Series, the affectionately named “D-Rob” went 38-22 with a 2.75 ERA, a 2.73 FIP, and a 154 ERA+ with 53 saves. His first stint was punctuated by the World Series victory, an All-Star campaign in 2011 as Mariano Rivera’s setup man, and succeeding Rivera as closer in 2014. After two and a half seasons with the Chicago White Sox, Robertson returned to the Yankees in 2017; this mid-season deal also brought fellow reliever Tommy Kahnle and third baseman Todd Frazier to New York. Robertson was brilliant down the stretch, posting a 5-0 record with a microscopic 1.03 ERA and 51 strikeouts in just 35 innings. He followed that up with a career-high 69.2 innings in 2018 with 91 strikeouts and a 3.23 ERA before leaving again in free agency. Robertson was plagued by injuries over the next three years, but returned to form in 2022 and 2023; he had productive stints with the Chicago Cubs and New York Mets, respectively. Both of these performances led to him being traded to the Philadelphia Phillies and Miami Marlins in 2022 and 2023, respectively; although he struggled with the Marlins, he made another appearance in the World Series with the Phillies. Now, he joins the defending World Series champion Rangers, who are looking to shore up a bullpen that is considered to be their primary weakness.

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“D-Rob” is one of just two active players to have played for the 2009 Yankees, the other being fellow reliever Mark Melancon (who, unlike Robertson, was not on the postseason or World Series rosters).

With a former fan favorite off the board, the Yankees will now have to look elsewhere for bullpen reinforcements.