In the bottom of the fifth inning, Carlos Rodon appeared to be nearing the end of the line, and that Yankees decided to drag him with runners on second and third with two out. In his place were not Tommy Kahnle, Clay Holmes or Luke Weaver, but Mark Leiter Jr., who is only here because of Ian Hamilton’s injury. He would be one of many relievers counted out during the regular season to play in this game for the Yankees, as they needed nothing less than perfection to set up Juan Soto’s magical home run.

After two straight games in which the Yankees’ bullpen imploded, they demanded that their lesser-known weapons be used as their high-leverage weapons appeared to be out of gas. In October, unsung heroes shape a team’s legacy, and after Carlos Rodon suffered a brief blip with a bullpen on its last legs, they were once again saved by their ragtag replacements.

Unlikely heroes send the Yankees to their 41st World Series

Mark Leiter Jr. was a disaster for the Yankees after being acquired at the deadline from the Cubs, but he delivered two of the biggest outings of the postseason. Steven Kwan’s Game 4 shutout was the most impactful game of the ALCS in terms of added championship win probability (+3.21%), and last night he pulled off another huge shutout by shutting out David Fry with two goals conceded and two shut out out of.

His outs served massively as he was able to pass the ball Tim Hill In the sixth inning, he immediately neutralized the Guardians with a double play after Bo Naylor used his hands to saw off a pitch for a single. The left-hander would get two more outs on a double play in the seventh inning and was one of the best relievers in that bullpen in the postseason.

After posting a 5.87 ERA with the Chicago White Sox, who ended up setting records for their ineptitude, Hill became DFA suspect in June and cleared waivers. 28 baseball teams passed up the chance to add him to the roster, but he made seven appearances in October with a 1.59 ERA and a GB% of 63.2%. He appeared in 35 games during the regular season with a 2.05 ERA as he threw fastballs and got outs with ease.

Who followed a pitcher that even the White Sox didn’t want to add to the 2024 roster? Jake Cousins, another Arm who was cut from Chicago’s roster when the Yankees acquired him for cash at the start of the regular season. After breaking out with the Brewers in 2021, he struggled with injuries and severe regression in 2022 and 2023, finding himself as a minor league FA before landing with the White Sox.

He posted a 4.82 ERA in nine games in 2023 and a 6.35 ERA in the minor leagues, and even early in the season he was only considered a reliever. The Yankees chose Jake Cousins ​​in April and we didn’t see him again until June, when he became one of the team’s best players. He struck 34.2% He struck out a number of batters with a 2.37 ERA in 38 innings and after running out of gas in the second inning of work in Game 4, he was untouchable in Game 5.

Cousins ​​struck out four of his five batters, allowing him to close the gap on star closer Luke Weaver, who promptly delivered the final six outs of this ballgame. People now know Weaver as this team’s bullpen ace, but forget that he is just a year removed from a terrible campaign that left him contemplating retirement.

Luke Weaver was the worst pitcher in baseball last season. Among pitchers with at least 110 innings pitched, he had the worst ERA in the sport (6.40) and was called up for relief twice. He had considered retiring this season as it was another career low point for the right-hander. A former first-round pick who was so coveted that he was a key part of the Paul Goldschmidt trade in 2018, he has finally found his role as the Yankees’ closer.

He finally looked lethal in Game 3 when he allowed a game-winning two-run bomb with two outs to Jhonkensy Noel, but with a chance to finish the job and send the Yankees to the World Series, he found his spiritual form again. It was a six-out save for a pitcher who perfectly embodies the underdog story. When the Yankees needed their bullpen to step up and be perfect, it was a group of arms that combined to hit 5.40 ERA in 2023 that saved the day.

Dumpster diving to pitch has always been frowned upon, but the Yankees have built a strong bullpen doing it. Each of these pitchers was named at some point in 2023 or 2024, and yet they were at the forefront of helping the Yankees capture their first pennant since the 2009 season.

This team stands out for the adversity it has faced and hopes to accomplish its task with a World Series title for the Bronx.