
Jonathan Loáisiga excels in long-awaited Yankees return: ‘I was missing it'
The Yankees bullpen got deeper and more dangerous Friday, if slightly more injury-prone.
Jonathan Loáisiga was activated off the injured list in time for the Subway Series in The Bronx, making it back 13 months after undergoing UCL surgery and throwing a scoreless sixth inning in a 6-2 win over the Mets.
'A lot of adrenaline. I was missing it,' Loáisiga said through an interpreter. 'I wanted to be out there, pitching for the team, pitching for the fans. I was really missing it and excited to be back.'
Loáisiga needed just 12 pitches to record three outs, working around a double with a sinker that sat around 96-98 mph.
'The one thing I didn't want [was] the velo to tick up too much,' manager Aaron Boone said. 'Now that next step of, 'Boom, you haven't been out here for a year, you're in Yankee Stadium, it's Subway Series,' so there's just an energy in the building. I thought he did a really good job of controlling that and letting his stuff work. I thought he was really sharp.'
Jonathan Loaisiga walks off the mound fter the sixth inning of the Yankees' 6-2 Subway Series-opening win over the Mets on May 16, 2025.
Corey Sipkin for the NY POST
The Yankees designated lefty reliever Tyler Matzek for assignment to make room for Loáisiga. They had liked what they saw from the veteran Matzek early in spring training, but upon returning from an oblique strain, he was not sharp in seven appearances.
Loáisiga has been largely strong for the Yankees when healthy, posting a 2.98 ERA in 139 games from 2020-2024. The only problem has been staying off the injured list, which has been a struggle. He missed time in 2019 and 2021 with a shoulder strain and in 2022 with shoulder inflammation, had surgery in 2023 to remove a bone spur in his right elbow, then underwent UCL reconstruction with an internal brace in April of last year after making just three appearances.
Jonathan Loaisiga made his long-awaited return for the Yankees in their win over the Mets.
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS
At his best, though, Loáisiga can be a righty killer with a high-90s sinker, providing more of a power look than the rest of the arms the Yankees currently have in their bullpen — a unit that entered Friday with an ERA of 3.47, good for ninth-best in the majors even with Devin Williams' inflated numbers.
The Yankees had initially planned to have Loáisiga finish off his rehab assignment by throwing on back-to-back days this weekend at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre but instead brought him back early because of how well he was throwing the ball and bouncing back.
'In the end, we decided he's pitched a lot. He's done everything we've needed him to do,' Boone said. 'He's had probably more than even a normal spring training as far as buildup, and it's just been so good. We feel like we should be able to protect him here in this first week, 10 days, two weeks. We can protect him when he pitches, having him down, things like that. So we'll be mindful of that. 'Just felt like what we've been looking at the last few months, it's been really good.'
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles

Yahoo
17 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Mets start 3-game series against the Nationals
Washington Nationals (30-35, third in the NL East) vs. New York Mets (42-24, first in the NL East) New York; Tuesday, 7:10 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Nationals: MacKenzie Gore (3-5, 2.87 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 108 strikeouts); Mets: Griffin Canning (6-2, 2.90 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 57 strikeouts) Advertisement BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Mets -162, Nationals +134; over/under is 7 1/2 runs BOTTOM LINE: The New York Mets begin a three-game series at home against the Washington Nationals on Tuesday. New York has a 42-24 record overall and a 24-7 record at home. The Mets are 32-9 in games when they record at least eight hits. Washington has a 30-35 record overall and a 15-17 record in road games. The Nationals have gone 17-11 in games when they did not give up a home run. The teams meet Tuesday for the fifth time this season. The season series is tied 2-2. TOP PERFORMERS: Pete Alonso leads the Mets with 17 home runs while slugging .594. Francisco Lindor is 13 for 40 with a double, four home runs and seven RBIs over the past 10 games. Advertisement James Wood has 16 doubles and 16 home runs for the Nationals. Luis Garcia is 15 for 41 with five doubles, a home run and eight RBIs over the past 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Mets: 8-2, .268 batting average, 2.70 ERA, outscored opponents by 31 runs Nationals: 5-5, .229 batting average, 4.10 ERA, outscored by four runs INJURIES: Mets: Francisco Lindor: day-to-day (toe), Mark Vientos: 10-Day IL (hamstring), Jesse Winker: 10-Day IL (side), Danny Young: 60-Day IL (elbow), A.J. Minter: 60-Day IL (lat), Frankie Montas: 60-Day IL (lat), Brooks Raley: 60-Day IL (elbow), Sean Manaea: 60-Day IL (oblique), Jose Siri: 10-Day IL (shin), Nick Madrigal: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Drew Smith: 60-Day IL (elbow), Christian Scott: 60-Day IL (elbow) Advertisement Nationals: Dylan Crews: 10-Day IL (back), Paul DeJong: 10-Day IL (face), Orlando Ribalta: 15-Day IL (biceps), Derek Law: 15-Day IL (forearm), DJ Herz: 60-Day IL (elbow), Mason Thompson: 60-Day IL (elbow), Josiah Gray: 60-Day IL (elbow) ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar. The Associated Press

Yahoo
31 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Caglianone leads Royals against the Yankees after 4-hit game
New York Yankees (39-25, first in the AL East) vs. Kansas City Royals (34-32, fourth in the AL Central) Kansas City, Missouri; Tuesday, 7:40 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Yankees: Max Fried (8-1, 1.78 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 77 strikeouts); Royals: Noah Cameron (2-1, 0.85 ERA, 0.79 WHIP, 19 strikeouts) Advertisement BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Yankees -201, Royals +166; over/under is 8 1/2 runs BOTTOM LINE: The Kansas City Royals play the New York Yankees after Jac Caglianone's four-hit game on Sunday. Kansas City has a 19-13 record in home games and a 34-32 record overall. Royals pitchers have a collective 3.31 ERA, which ranks fifth in the majors. New York has an 18-13 record in road games and a 39-25 record overall. The Yankees are first in the AL with 105 total home runs, averaging 1.6 per game. Tuesday's game is the fourth time these teams meet this season. TOP PERFORMERS: Maikel Garcia has a .312 batting average to lead the Royals, and has 16 doubles, two triples and seven home runs. Vinnie Pasquantino is 16 for 38 with two home runs and eight RBIs over the past 10 games. Advertisement Aaron Judge leads the Yankees with 23 home runs while slugging .771. Austin Wells is 9 for 33 with a double, two home runs and six RBIs over the past 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Royals: 5-5, .292 batting average, 4.09 ERA, outscored by three runs Yankees: 5-5, .255 batting average, 6.34 ERA, outscored by 17 runs INJURIES: Royals: Hunter Harvey: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Lucas Erceg: 15-Day IL (back), Alec Marsh: 60-Day IL (shoulder), James McArthur: 60-Day IL (elbow), Sam Long: 15-Day IL (elbow), Kyle Wright: 15-Day IL (shoulder) Yankees: Luke Weaver: 15-Day IL (hamstring), Oswaldo Cabrera: 10-Day IL (ankle), Giancarlo Stanton: 60-Day IL (elbow), Marcus Stroman: 15-Day IL (knee), JT Brubaker: 60-Day IL (ribs), Jake Cousins: 60-Day IL (elbow), Gerrit Cole: 60-Day IL (elbow), Luis Gil: 60-Day IL (back) ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar. The Associated Press


Associated Press
37 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Caglianone leads Royals against the Yankees after 4-hit game
New York Yankees (39-25, first in the AL East) vs. Kansas City Royals (34-32, fourth in the AL Central) Kansas City, Missouri; Tuesday, 7:40 p.m. EDT PITCHING PROBABLES: Yankees: Max Fried (8-1, 1.78 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 77 strikeouts); Royals: Noah Cameron (2-1, 0.85 ERA, 0.79 WHIP, 19 strikeouts) BETMGM SPORTSBOOK LINE: Yankees -201, Royals +166; over/under is 8 1/2 runs BOTTOM LINE: The Kansas City Royals play the New York Yankees after Jac Caglianone's four-hit game on Sunday. Kansas City has a 19-13 record in home games and a 34-32 record overall. Royals pitchers have a collective 3.31 ERA, which ranks fifth in the majors. New York has an 18-13 record in road games and a 39-25 record overall. The Yankees are first in the AL with 105 total home runs, averaging 1.6 per game. Tuesday's game is the fourth time these teams meet this season. TOP PERFORMERS: Maikel Garcia has a .312 batting average to lead the Royals, and has 16 doubles, two triples and seven home runs. Vinnie Pasquantino is 16 for 38 with two home runs and eight RBIs over the past 10 games. Aaron Judge leads the Yankees with 23 home runs while slugging .771. Austin Wells is 9 for 33 with a double, two home runs and six RBIs over the past 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Royals: 5-5, .292 batting average, 4.09 ERA, outscored by three runs Yankees: 5-5, .255 batting average, 6.34 ERA, outscored by 17 runs INJURIES: Royals: Hunter Harvey: 60-Day IL (shoulder), Lucas Erceg: 15-Day IL (back), Alec Marsh: 60-Day IL (shoulder), James McArthur: 60-Day IL (elbow), Sam Long: 15-Day IL (elbow), Kyle Wright: 15-Day IL (shoulder) Yankees: Luke Weaver: 15-Day IL (hamstring), Oswaldo Cabrera: 10-Day IL (ankle), Giancarlo Stanton: 60-Day IL (elbow), Marcus Stroman: 15-Day IL (knee), JT Brubaker: 60-Day IL (ribs), Jake Cousins: 60-Day IL (elbow), Gerrit Cole: 60-Day IL (elbow), Luis Gil: 60-Day IL (back) ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.