There were times last year when Paul Blackburn didn’t know what his role was with the Mets.
A career starter, sometimes the right-hander found himself doing what he had always done. Other days, he came out of the bullpen. Often, he didn’t get much advance notice either way.
“I had some outings out of the pen with the Mets last year, but I was never told that,” Blackburn, who totaled four starts and seven games for the Queens club, said earlier this month. “It was like, ‘Hey, we’re gonna put you in the pen this time around, [but] you might start next time around,’ so it was a lot of uncertainty.
“I felt like we were just playing a video game. Like that’s not how it really works.”
The Mets ultimately released Blackburn, who battled knee inflammation and a shoulder impingement last year, in August. Since then, he’s mostly put up video game-like numbers for the Yankees while working strictly as a reliever.
He’s been so good that the Bombers may have to do a little less bullpen shopping prior to the Aug. 3 trade deadline.
“For a while there, he was a good secret,” Aaron Boone said Wednesday after Blackburn struck out three over two scoreless innings in Game 2 of a doubleheader, a 2-0 win over the Pirates. “Then about a week or 10 days ago, somebody asked me about the job he had done because it had been about a month-plus of some really good work, whether it be a high-leverage situation [or] giving you multiple innings on a given night.”
As the manager mentioned, Blackburn has been lights-out, posting a 0.99 ERA over 36.1 innings since May 16. No pitcher with at least 30 frames owns a better ERA over that stretch, and Blackburn’s 22.9 K% during that span represents an increase from his mark of 19.4% for the season.
With a 2.00 ERA and a 57% groundball rate overall, the 32-year-old has transitioned from a project and a longman to a trusted member of Boone’s bullpen since finishing the 2025 regular season with a 1.50 ERA over his last 12 innings.
A clean bill of health has played a huge part in Blackburn’s success, as he was able to prioritize building strength and improving his mobility over the offseason after re-signing on a one-year, $2 million deal that also includes innings-based incentives. That focus has paid off; Blackburn threw the two fastest pitches of his career Wednesday, reaching 96.9 mph and 96.7 mph with a pair of sinkers.
His average sinker velocity is up from 92.6 mph last year to 94.2 mph in 2026. He is also throwing his cutter 1.4 mph faster this season.
Blackburn has adjusted how he uses his arsenal since becoming a Yankee, too, altering his pitch selection for lefties and righties, who both have a sub-.575 OPS against him this season. He’s upped his sinker and cutter frequency against righties, maximizing two pitches that the Yankees tweaked his grips on last year. Lefties, meanwhile, are seeing his changeup roughly twice as often as they did in 2025.
Blackburn has attributed his strong season to comfort, as well. That applies to a defined role, a solidified routine, an evolved repertoire, and his mechanics and mentality, but also his place inside the Yankees’ clubhouse.
Speaking of open secrets, the 2025 Mets didn’t always get along, and Blackburn said he immediately felt “chemistry” and “love” after joining the pinstripers as a free agent last summer.
That and a clear vision for what he could be as a reliever made Blackburn eager to re-sign with the Yankees, even though other teams viewed him as a starter in free agency.
“When I showed up last year, I didn’t know what to expect really,” said Blackburn, an All-Star member of the Athletic’s rotation in 2022. “But I walked in, and there was a plan for me from Day 1. It just seemed like they were interested in helping me and getting me back to where everyone thought I could be.”
Other relievers have failed to step up, forcing the Yankees to search for external bullpen help, in addition to a catcher and a right-handed bat.
Camilo Doval and Jake Bird, acquired at last year’s deadline, have drowned in the same waters that Blackburn has swam in. Ryan Yarbrough is just a longman, Tim Hill has struggled overall and especially with righties, and top prospect Carlos Lagrange won’t bring his triple-digit heat to the bullpen anytime soon after suffering a shoulder sprain.
While the Yankees could transition starters Ryan Weathers or Will Warren to the bullpen if their Carlos Rodón-less rotation gets and stays fully healthy — Clarke Schmidt, recovering from Tommy John surgery, could also become an option — Brian Cashman would be wise to add at least one more high-leverage reliever to the backend of his bullpen. That group already features closer David Bednar, Fernando Cruz and Brent Headrick.
Headrick, another converted starter, has also been a bullpen breakout, though Boone had high expectations for him coming into the season.
“He’s been outstanding,” the skipper said of the lefty, who has a 1.40 ERA and a 30.0 K% over 51 games, which was tied for the major league lead with the Yankees off on Thursday.
There’s also Angel Chivilli, who has quietly impressed since suffering a shoulder injury and being recalled on July 5. The hard-throwing righty, acquired from the Rockies in late January, hasn’t allowed a run over seven games and nine innings since the promotion, and he’s struck out nine with just one walk.
The Yankees have started to show increased faith in the 23-year-old, bringing Chivilli into two close games during the Pirates series. He permitted two baserunners – a single and that one walk – over 2.1 innings and took the win in Monday’s 8-5 victory.
“He’s done a heck of a job too since coming back,” Boone said Wednesday, adding that Chivilli has “been a nice, pleasant surprise.”
Boone also said that Chivilli has “seized” his opportunity. With Blackburn and Headrick doing the same, the Yankees may need fewer arms than they originally thought before the deadline.