With the 2026 trade deadline looming in the coming weeks, contending teams are looking to do everything between making a big splash and tying up some loose ends. Among the more frequent moves at the deadline is movement among veteran relief pitchers. With the Orioles 10 games out of the American League East, and four games under .500, there’s a reasonable chance Yennier Cano could fit that bill.
The Yankees, just like almost any team with October aspirations, could always use some security in the
bullpen. The righty broke out with an All-Star season in 2023, and is enjoying his best season in 2026 since then. Cano is a talented pitcher, and has two more years of team control, so he wouldn’t necessarily be the cheapest option out there, but he could certainly be of help to plenty of contending clubs.
2026 Statistics (Thus Far): 42 games, 31.0 IP, 1-2 W-L, 1 save, 2.32 ERA (183 ERA+), 2.58 FIP, 3.25 xFIP, 22.0% K%, 6.3% BB%, 1.06 WHIP, 0.6 fWAR, 0.6 rWAR
2026 ZiPS Rest-of-Season Statistics: 24 games, 24.0 IP, 2-1 W-L, 3.54 ERA, 3.55 FIP, 21.6% K%, 8.0% BB%, 0.2 fWAR
Cano, who made his major league debut at 28 years old back in 2022, has had an up-and-down career in the big leagues. The big right-hander made that debut with the Minnesota Twins, though he pitched only 10 games with the club before being traded to the Orioles. On the whole, none of his 13 games in his debut season were particularly impressive, but Cano did enough to stick around for the 2023 season, and the O’s were certainly glad that he did.
In that year, the righty pitched 72.2 innings, managing a sparkling 2.11 ERA and 2.84 FIP for Baltimore. For a team that won over 100 games, Cano was a vital part of the bullpen for the O’s that featured several premier arms. The performance warranted an All-Star selection for the then 29-year-old, and locked him in as a cog in the Baltimore ‘pen.
While it wasn’t quite on par with the year prior, Cano was still good in the 2024 season, where he worked 60 innings in relief with a still-respectable 3.15 ERA. In a similar workload in 2025, however, Cano struggled to make much of anything happen, as his ERA soared above five while his strikeout and walk rates each took hits. It was certainly a disappointing season for the righty, in his third full year with the O’s, but there was still time for a rebound for Cano.
To this point in the season, it’s fair to call Cano’s 2026 season exactly that. He’s pitched in 42 games this year (just 31 innings), but they have been high quality ones. His 2.32 ERA is the best since that All-Star campaign and his 2.58 FIP would be a career-best. While his strikeout rate is trending in the wrong direction, his control has been top-notch, as he’s limited walks at the best rate in his career. After a down year, a control-reliant bounce back was exactly what the righty needed.
As far as a fit with the Yankees, it would be hard to deny the need for quality bullpen arms for any squad. With one of their prior deadline acquisitions, Camilo Doval, managing an ERA north of five, the Yankees will take another impact right-hander by any means. Whether the Yankees will pay the price for a reliever with two-plus years of control remains to be seen, but Cano would easily slide into almost any bullpen with ease.
Yennier Cano’s track record in the big leagues is not exactly a consistent one, but his highs are impressive, and he’s seemingly in the midst of one of them here in the 2026 season. The Yankees wouldn’t shy away from bullpen help, but the question remains of whether they’d pay for Cano’s talents and team control.
