Yankees Add Righty With Limited MLB Experience

Ian Hamilton has appeared in 15 big league games since debuting with the White Sox in 2018. A few frightening events limited his 2019 season.

The Yankees recently inked another pitcher to a minor league deal, signing Ian Hamilton at the end of January.

The 27-year-old right hander was assigned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre over the weekend, according to his MLB.com page.

The White Sox used an 11th-round draft pick on Hamilton in 2016. The Washington State University product debuted for Chicago in 2018 and recorded a 4.50 ERA over eight innings.

However, Hamilton’s 2019 season was limited to 16 games in the minor leagues after a series of unfortunate events. First, he hurt his shoulder in an auto accident, which also included his fiancée, during spring training. Then came June, when a line drive struck Hamilton in the face during a Triple-A game while was sitting in the dugout.

Hamilton, who was recovering from a quad injury at the time, suffered multiple facial fractures, lost six front teeth and required five surgeries, according to the Daily Herald. He finished the season with a 9.92 ERA for Class AAA Charlotte.

Hamilton made a major league comeback during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, logging four innings for the White Sox while allowing two earned runs. He spent the 2021 season in Minnesota’s system and returned to The Show with the Twins last season as a COVID-19 replacement.

Hamilton was never on the Twins’ 40-man roster. He allowed two earned runs over 2.2 frames in his lone appearance for them on June 4, 2022. A month later, Hamilton was traded to the Guardians for catcher Sandy Leon.

Hamilton totaled 47.1 innings between Minnesota and Cleveland’s Triple-A affiliates last season while tallying a 3.61 ERA, 60 strikeouts and 19 walks. He has pitched in 15 MLB games for his career and owns a 4.91 ERA. 

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