Yankees' Yovanny Cruz fires 100-mph heat, lots of strikes in 'beautiful' MLB debut

Gary Phillips, New York Daily News on May 21, 2026

Published in Baseball

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NEW YORK — The day before his major league debut, Yovanny Cruz sought advice from another pitcher in the New York Yankees’ bullpen.

“Breathe in, breathe out, keep it simple out there, and just focus on the job,” Fernando Cruz, of no relation, told the 26-year-old on Tuesday.

Those words echoed in the greener Cruz’s mind as he unleashed triple-digit fastballs and dirty sliders on the Blue Jays Wednesday night. While the Yankees lost the game, 2-1, after a pitching duel between Cam Schlittler and Trey Yesavage, Cruz introduced himself with authority, striking out three over two hitless, scoreless innings.

“Oof,” Cruz, promoted on May 18, said of the adrenaline he felt on the mound. “Thank God for this opportunity and the opportunity the team gave me there. I felt a little nervous going in, but very happy with the outing.”

Cruz drew minimal attention as the Yankees’ first signing of the offseason on Nov. 8, as he had yet to pitch above Double-A and only inked a minor league contract. But the righty turned heads at the end of spring training after missing some time due to a shoulder issue and paternity leave, flashing his 100-mph fastball in a few exhibition games. Cruz parlayed that into an electric start to his minor league season, posting a 0.69 ERA with four walks and 17 strikeouts over his first 13 innings at Triple-A.

While Cruz came down to earth before his promotion — he allowed a run in each of his last five Triple-A appearances — the Yankees felt it was time to see what his big arm could do in The Show after eight seasons in the minors and numerous injuries.

“It was really cool to see somebody realize their dream of getting to the big leagues,” Aaron Boone said. “Everyone’s journey is different, and I think he wore that on his sleeve a little bit, which was, I felt, kind of touching watching him and the appreciation he had for being on a major league field, and then going out and producing.”

Cruz, who previously spent time in the Boston Red Sox, San Diego Padres and Chicago Cubs’ systems, gave the Yankees — and Jays — plenty to look at despite only throwing 15 pitches on Wednesday.

Eight of those cracked 98 mph, and three topped 100 mph. Cruz’s top speed was 100.9.

His slider, meanwhile, was the put-away pitch on each of his strikeouts. Kazuma Okamoto became the first of the pitcher’s career in the eighth inning; Cruz kept the ball.

“I just wanted to attack the hitters and focus on what I wanted to do there,” Cruz said. “I got the results I wanted tonight.”

Not to be lost in the high-octane stuff: 13 of the 15 pitches Cruz threw were strikes. That’s significant considering improving his command was a point of emphasis for the 6-8 hurler in camp and at Triple-A.

Cruz said he used dummy batters when throwing side sessions in the minors in an effort to do that.

“He filled up the zone with — you see the stuff,” Boone said. “His slider was really good. Obviously, the fastball, in that 100-101 range. But the key for him is filling up the strike zone. He did it with both pitches, was kind of dominant, and also really efficient.”

Now the question is how long will Cruz stay in the majors?

While he dazzled on Wednesday, Cruz wasn’t as sharp in his second appearance on Thursday, allowing a double and hitting a batter in a 2-0 win for Toronto. With Gerrit Cole returning from Tommy John surgery on Friday, the team could send Cruz back to the minors.

Or, after showing some stellar stuff, the Yankees could hang onto Cruz and cut a more seasoned reliever from a bullpen that has struggled of late.

“We’ll see,” Boone said before Thursday’s game. “We’ll make those decisions tonight and go from there.”

If the Yankees want to keep Cruz around, Jake Bird hasn’t been consistent — though his underlying metrics suggest he’s been better than his 4.41 ERA — and has a minor league option. The Yankees also have two longmen — that’s one more than necessary — in Paul Blackburn and Ryan Yarbrough. Neither has made a major impact and could be designated for assignment after signing small-time, incentive-laden deals over the offseason.

Regardless of what the Yankees do, Cruz certainly earned more opportunities this season with his performance on Wednesday. He called the night a “beautiful experience,” and he took a moment to appreciate his surroundings once he took the mound.

“It was a long road to get here, a lot of injuries, a lot of things that I had to overcome,” Cruz said, “so I’m just really excited and happy to be here.”

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