Inside The Pinstripes

Yankees' JP Sears Earns First MLB Win, Gets Optioned to Triple-A After Game

Sears made his second career appearance on Saturday, pitching one inning in relief against the Orioles.

Max Goodman

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BALTIMORE — Moments after earning the first win of his MLB career, talking about his experience with the big-league club this spring, left-hander JP Sears was optioned from the Yankees down to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

New York revealed the transaction late with an announcement on Saturday night after their 5-2 victory over the Orioles.

Sears came in from the bullpen in relief of starter Jameson Taillon, who lasted 4.2 innings (and two rain delays). Working out of Taillon's jam in the fifth, before getting the first two outs in the sixth, Sears was given his first win in his second big-league appearance.

"I definitely felt more comfortable tonight," Sears told reporters in the visitor's clubhouse after the game. "I was excited to get out there and help Taillon in the fifth."

Replacing Taillon with two outs in the inning, Sears promptly walked Baltimore's leadoff hitter Cedric Mullins, loading the bases. Just three pitches later, the 26-year-old was able to end the inning unscathed, getting second baseman Ramon Urías to fly out to Aaron Judge in right field. 

"He's not afraid out there, even in that situation," manager Aaron Boone said, evaluating Sears' performance. "Even though he lost Mullins, which wasn't ideal, I knew he'd be fine mentally and emotionally to bounce back and obviously got a big out."

In the sixth, Sears allowed two singles before striking out ex-Yankee Rougned Odor. With two outs, Boone called to the 'pen, bringing right-hander Michael King on to get out of the inning.

King went on to pitch two frames, handing the ball off to right-hander Clay Holmes in the eighth who finished the ballgame, recording the first save of his career.  

Sears made his debut at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday, pitching a scoreless ninth in a loss to the Blue Jays.

A starter in the minor leagues, Sears—New York's No. 24 prospect, per MLB.com—broke camp with the Bombers to provide some length in the bullpen as part of the Yankees' 16-man pitching staff.

"He's been great," Yankees catcher Jose Trevino said Saturday. "That's a good hitter that he struck out there in Odor. He was the first guy that I caught in the spring when I came over to the Yankees, so I was familiar with him and I thought he threw the ball well tonight."

With Sears heading down to Triple-A, New York has yet to officially make a corresponding move as of late Saturday night. Odds are, they'll add a pitcher on Sunday morning, bringing another arm to Baltimore as they finish off a stretch of 10 games in 10 days to start the regular season.

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Yankees for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. Goodman has been on the Yankees beat for three seasons. He is also the publisher of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Jets site, Jets Country. Before starting Inside The Pinstripes, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. At school, Goodman was an anchor and reporter with NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. While at Northwestern, Goodman interned with MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman. You can connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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