When the Yankees were faced with the prospect of a bullpen game Monday night, they turned to Jonathan Holder as the “opener.” That’s not all that surprising. Holder’s been one of the team’s top bullpen arms all year.
The surprise was who came next: a southpaw with the potential to earn a postseason roster spot.
As you can tell from the title of this piece, that lefty is Stephen Tarpley, who promptly sat down three Rays lefties in order. While Yankee fans likely assumed Justus Sheffield was the only September call-up with a chance to earn a postseason role, Tarpley has emerged as the LOOGY the Yankees haven’t had this year.