The New York Yankees couldn’t have asked for a better opening act. After steamrolling the Milwaukee Brewers to the tune of 36 runs in three games, the Bombers have looked more like a runaway train than a baseball team.
But the calendar has flipped to April, and the first major roadblock of the season looms.
From Bullpen Day to Burnes Day
Milwaukee’s rotation didn’t exactly bring the firepower over the weekend. The Yankees were treated to a steady diet of misplaced fastballs, struggling command, and exhausted relievers. It was like handing a blowtorch to a team that already had matches in both hands.
Now comes Corbin Burnes, a man who doesn’t miss spots and doesn’t care how many home runs you hit last week.
The Yankees will face the 30-year-old ace on Tuesday night as they open a series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Burnes, who just inked a massive six-year, $210 million deal after a brilliant 2024 season with the Baltimore Orioles, is the kind of pitcher who can flip a lineup’s confidence like a light switch.
Burnes’ Arsenal Could Muzzle Yankees’ Bats
Last season, Burnes posted a sparkling 2.92 ERA over 194.1 innings, continuing his reign as one of the most feared right-handers in baseball. His numbers in spring training were less than inspiring—but let’s not get fooled. That’s typically when elite pitchers experiment with new grips, fiddle with velocity, and tune their mechanics, not show off.
Burnes enters 2025 in peak form, armed with an arsenal that makes hitters second-guess everything. His cutter sits at 95.3 mph and plays like a buzzsaw. His sinker, clocking in at 97 mph, is an absolute demon when it dips low in the zone. And then there’s his slider—one of the best in the business—limiting hitters to a .198 average and a mere .271 slugging rate last season.
Add a nasty curveball to the mix, and the Yankees will be facing a five-pitch monster, all of them graded above average by advanced metrics.
A Legitimate Test After a Feast
This will be the first real challenge for the Yankees’ offense. Sure, they mashed 15 home runs in three games and saw Austin Wells, Aaron Judge, Cody Bellinger, Jazz Chisholm, and Ben Rice light up the box scores—but that was against an overmatched Brewers staff with more question marks than answers.
- The Yankees’ bullpen still look great after wave of injuries
- Ex-Yankees fan-favorite infielder already injured after 2 games
- The Yankees are about to face their first major hurdle of the season
Burnes won’t hand out middle-middle fastballs like Halloween candy. He won’t miss barrels the way the Brewers did. If the Yankees want to prove this offensive surge is more than just a spring spark, Tuesday night will be their chance.
They’ve feasted. Now it’s time to find out if they can cook against the league’s best.