Yankees claim discarded Astros reliever and it feels deliberately petty

Every so often, there's an outside-the-box signing or waiver claim that just doesn't make much sense. The Yankees picking up former Houston Astros reliever Kaleb Ort off waivers is exactly that type of transaction, and one has to wonder if this move goes a little deeper than just your typical low-key acquisition.

No offense to Ort, but his numbers were nothing write home about last season. The right-hander made 49 apperances out of the Astros bullpen and struck out 25% of the batters he faced. He also posted a walk rate near 14% and his ERA was barely below 5.00. Moreover, Ort had a 5.03 FIP, so this wasn't a case of being unlucky — he wasn't good.

Yankees claim former Astros reliever Kaleb Ort and it feels deliberately petty

Ort didn't even make his Major League debut until he was 29 years old. In 2021, Ort was called up to the big leagues by the Red Sox, and even then his first taste of the big leagues was merely one-third of an inning. Seriously! He allowed a base hit and walk, and after three batters was pulled from the game and sent back to the minor leagues.

So why in the world do the big, bad New York Yankees feel the need to take a flier on a run-of-the-mill arm like Ort? Sure, you can say they're adding depth to their pitching staff ahead of spring training, blah, blah, blah...this feels uniquely personal. Astros fans know how deep their rivalry with the Yankees goes, and this just feels like one of those moves meant to ruffle some feathers in the front office.

By the Yankees claiming Ort, they just prevented the Astros from outrighting him to Triple-A Sugar Land and offering him a non-roster invite to spring training. Houston obviously knew the risk when they exposed him to waivers, but he's now the 40th player on a Yankees roster that still has several holes remaining this offseason. There's a good chance that the Yankees will dump Ort the first chance they get.

All of this is speculation, of course, but sometimes these types of moves find a way to raise suspicion. And, it's the Yankees, so Astros fans should always view such moves with a jaundiced eye.