TAMPA — As Angel Chivilli hung at a friend’s house in his native Dominican Republic on Jan. 27, a late-night phone call interrupted their game of dominoes.
When the reliever answered, his agent told him that there was a strong chance he would be traded by the Rockies soon. Naturally, Chivilli wanted to know who was interested in his services.
He was shocked to learn that it was the Yankees, who officially acquired the 23-year-old when they sent minor league first baseman T.J. Rumfield to Colorado the following day.
“When you think about the opportunity of coming to such a team as the New York Yankees, you know the history behind the team,” Chivilli said. “Seeing that a team like that is willing to give me a chance to come in here, join this team, it felt very good.”
Chivilli was also surprised to learn that the Yankees had targeted him in the past.
Following the trade, Brian Cashman said that he had spoken to the Rockies’ previous regime, led by Bill Schmidt, about Chivilli. The general manager circled back when Paul DePodesta took over in Colorado this offseason.
The question is why the Yankees were interested in the right-hander, as Chivilli had a 7.06 ERA, allowed 2.0 HR/9 and totaled just a 15.6% strikeout rate in 2025. And with a 6.18 ERA over 73 games since debuting with the Rockies in 2024, Chivilli’s standard stats aren’t exactly alluring.
But he’s now escaping the unfriendly confines of Coors Field, and he’s bringing with him a fastball that averaged 97.1 mph, good enough for the 88th percentile, in 2025. Chivilli’s arsenal also includes a slider and a changeup, which yielded whiff rates of 45.5% and 42.6%, respectively.
With those tools in place — he also had a 49.8 groundball percentage last year — the Yankees believe that their pitching department can mold Chivilli into a better reliever than he was in Colorado.
“He’s got two really good offspeed pitches,” Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake said. “What’s the threshold for how we utilize those? Is there anything we can do with the fastball? It got hit a little bit last year, but ultimately, we gotta control the strike zone, and then get miss. So we’re finding avenues to do that.”
That process began shortly after the trade, as assistant pitching coach Preston Claiborne said that Chivilli threw for Brett DeGagne, the Yankees’ minor league pitching coordinator, at the team’s complex in the Dominican Republic shortly after he was acquired.
Claiborne added that the Yankees haven’t made any wholesale changes to Chivilli’s game just yet, as they’re still learning him, and vice versa.
“There might be something down the line, but obviously he came in with two big-time swing-and-miss pitches,” Claiborne said, echoing Blake’s scouting report.
Aaron Boone did as well while highlighting Chivilli’s athleticism after watching him throw live batting practice on Wednesday. However, the manager noted that the pitcher’s command is still coming along; Boone is hoping that the Yankees’ catchers can assist Chivilli with his targeting.
“We think we can help him get better, because he’s got a lot of talent,” Boone concluded.
If that doesn’t happen right away, Chivilli has a minor league option and just a year of service time. That means the Yankees can make him a longer-term project if necessary.
But if Chivilli can make strides this spring, he will have a chance to make the Yankees’ Opening Day bullpen, which has a few spots up for grabs with some other fliers in camp. That’s his hope as he tries to make good on the Yankees’ extended interest in him.
“It’s exciting,” he said of the opportunity, “because at the end of the day, it tells you that you have the potential to be a good piece for this team.”
