Ageing former Yankees reliever and the Red Sox reach an agreement
According to a post on Lucas Luetge’s Instagram page, the Red Sox and the left-hander are in agreement on a deal. Although Luetge did not disclose the specifics of the agreement, it is most likely a minor league contract that entitles the player to spring training with the major league team.
Luetge, who turns 37 next month, joined the Mariners in 2012 and made his Major League Baseball debut. During his debut season, the southpaw pitched well, recording a 4.03 FIP and 3.98 ERA, approximately league average, while also striking out 21.3 percent of hitters faced and 46.9 percent of ground balls. Despite his strong peripheral metrics, Luetge’s control problems hindered his overall effectiveness in his maiden major league season, walking a high 13.5 batters faced.
The left-hander pitched to a 4.66 ERA and 4.47 FIP in 48 major league appearances during the next three seasons while splitting his time between Triple-A and the majors for the Mariners. Prior to being outright sent to the minors in late 2015, he managed a slightly stronger 4.21 ERA across 94 appearances in the minors. Shortly afterward, he declared for free agency, and he wouldn’t return to the major leagues until 2021, when he signed a bullpen deal with the Yankees.
Luetge pitched to a 2.71 ERA and 2.92 FIP in 129 2/3 innings of work over the 2021 and 2022 seasons, enjoying the best seasons of his career in the Bronx. During those two seasons, he struck out 25% of batters faced while walking only 5.8% of them. These remarkable figures earned him several high-leverage opportunities with the team. In the 2022–2023 offseason, Luetge’s time in New York was abruptly cut short when he was designated for assignment by the Yankees in order to create space on the 40-man roster for Tommy Kahnle.
Soon after, he was traded to the Braves, where he began the 2023 season in the bullpen. However, he didn’t stick around for long because in his first nine appearances with the team, he gave up eleven runs in 9 2/3 innings of work. After being outrighted to Triple-A, he finished the season with the Braves. After the All-Star break, he rejoined the big league team and tossed three scoreless innings in his final three games, but it wasn’t enough to keep him on the 40-man roster going into the offseason. Luetge chose to become a free agent the following month after being officially cut from the team’s roster once more in late September.
Luetge is now back in the AL East looking for his next major league position. Brennan Bernardino is the only left-handed reliever the Red Sox currently have projected to be a member of their major league bullpen. Alongside Joe Jacques and Bernardino, who are currently on the team’s 40-man roster, Luetge is expected to compete in the bullpen competition this spring alongside fellow non-roster southpaws Jorge Benitez and Cam Booser. Luetge’s return to form, which he showed while in New York, would be extremely beneficial for the Boston team, who finished the previous season with a 4.18 ERA in the bullpen, which was only 16th in the majors.
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