The New York Yankees made moves to their roster, in order to enhance it just days before formally opening MLB Spring Training in 2026. The paradox of the case is that the mules added a piece that was in the previous harvest with their city rivals, Mets, apart from the fact that it belonged to the Texas Rangers at the beginning of this week.
Indeed, the popular Bronx team claimed right-handed pitcher Dom Hamel from the Texans’ waiver list, a decision that forced those led by Aaron Boone to place left-handed Jayvien Sandridge and utility man Marco Luciano for assignment, as confirmed by the official Major League website.
Hamel comes to the Yankees looking for stability after a hectic journey in recent months. The former prospect, now 26 years old, was originally selected in the third round of the 2021 draft by the Mets and during his time on the farms he was considered a future starter for the main team.
The Yankees have claimed Dom Hamel off of waivers
Hamel made his MLB debut in 2025 with the Mets prior to spending time with the Orioles’ and Rangers’ organizations pic.twitter.com/VmG2HvnpBd
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) January 27, 2026
Likewise, the Yankees’ new reinforcement made his debut in the majors in 2025 when he saw action in a match against the San Diego Padres on September 17. In that presentation he worked 1.0 innings in a relief role, without allowing runs despite giving up three hits and hitting a batter. Throughout the campaign but in Triple A, the arm in question left a 4-6 record with a 5.32 ERA.
Despite being recognized as the Pitcher of the Year in the Minors within the metropolitan organization, Hamel has a record of 27-24 among all categories prior to MLB and a poor 4.91 in clean lines allowed. In fact, when the tenants of Citi Field put him on waivers on September 18, the aforementioned pitcher was taken a few days later by the Baltimore Orioles, before moving in the same way to the Rangers, a squad that was trying to get rid of his services starting on January 20.
On the other hand, Jayvien Sandridge had a very limited participation with the Yankees, appearing in only one game in 2025, in which he allowed two runs in just 0.2 innings. Meanwhile, the Dominican Luciano was a prospect for the San Francisco Giants who left the bay at the beginning of December and had passed through Pittsburgh Pirates, Baltimore and New York in the last month and a half.
