Yankees' Luke Weaver Sends Message After Fourth Straight Loss

Luke Weaver is a right-handed relief pitcher in his tenth major-league season, currently closing for the New York Yankees. 

A Florida State product, he was selected 27th overall by the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2014 MLB Draft and debuted in 2016. After three seasons in St. Louis—posting a 5.70 ERA as a rookie—he was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks for Paul Goldschmidt following the 2018 season.

Weaver’s tenure in Arizona included a rough 2020 campaign: he went 1–9 with a 6.58 ERA in the pandemic-shortened season and led the National League in losses. He continued to struggle as a starter, bouncing around the league until the Yankees reinvented him as a relief pitcher. 

Weaver posted a 2.89 ERA with 103 strikeouts and four saves over 84 innings in 2024, and the club picked up his $2.5 million option and handed him the Yankees’ closer job heading into 2025.

New York Yankees relief pitcher Luke Weaver (30)

Ken Blaze-Imagn Images

Weaver spent time on the injured list in June with a left hamstring strain and has struggled since, allowing six earned runs in five innings pitched. 

After the Yankees dropped their fourth straight game to the Toronto Blue Jays, Weaver addressed the team’s struggles, “I have full confidence that myself and the rest of us will string it together, but make no mistake, this is not something that you just move on from and go about your life all happy and normal. You just sit there and soak on it a little bit.”

Before the injury, the right-hander was one of the game’s best relievers, converting eight saves with a 1.05 ERA over 24 outings. 

Following the Blue Jays sweep, New York officially surrendered the AL East lead, sitting one game back at 48–39, and will look to rebound against the New York Mets on Friday.