Top 5 pitchers that have played for the Yankees and the Rays

To expand on our previous article, we will discuss the greatest pitchers who have toed the rubber for both American League East clubs. Please feel free to judge accordingly!

1. Dwight Gooden

Most readers will probably question the fact that Gooden even played for the Rays or the Yankees as we spent the majority of his 16-year career with the other New York organization, the Mets. While this picture is clear proof of a Rays' tenure, we can also glance at his statistics while in the Sunshine State. The right-handed starter played his last season in 2000 for 3 different teams, the Astros, Devil Rays, and Yankees. While a member of the Devil Rays, Gooden went 2-3 with a 6.63 ERA. He was obviously at the end of his career and he was playing for an organizaton that was only 2 years old at the time, but nevertheless, we are honored to have had him join the team for that short stint.

It is only fair to portray his lucrative era as a pitcher. Dwight Gooden racked up a ton of hardware as he won a Cy Young award, Rookie of the Year award, Triple Crown, and two World Series championships (1986 with the Mets and 1996 with the Yankees).

2. Corey Kluber

Corey Kluber started his career with the Cleveland Indians as he pitched 9 seasons with them and boasted a tremendous 98-58 record. Kluber's stretch with Cleveland also came with 2 Cy Young awards and 3 all star appearances.

The Texas native wore a different uniform the last 4 seasons of his career. He gave the Rays very quality starts in 2022 as he completed that year with a 10-10 record and a 4.34 ERA in 164 innings. This was an incredible achievement at the age of 36 and aided the Rays in obtaining a Wild Card appearance.

3. David Robertson

David Robertson doesn't have the accolades that the previous members of this list acquired, but he has shown impressive numbers nonetheless. Robertson has been a part of eight different clubhouses and produced solid stats for every single team. His 9 seasons with the New York Yankees were very memorable as he finished with an admirable 2.75 ERA and a 2009 World Series ring.

Despite all of his success, the University of Alabama grad has only been featured in one all star game! You could definitely say that David Robertson is one of the most underrated relief pitchers of this generation.

4. Nathan Eovaldi

Nathan Eovaldi has thrown most of his innings with another AL East foe in the Red Sox, but his time with the Yankees and Rays should certainly be accounted for. Eovaldi played 2 seasons in New York winning 23 games and striking out 218 opponents.

He started the 2018 campaign with the Rays before being traded to the Red Sox at the deadline. His numbers with the Rays were manageable as he recorded a 4.26 ERA over 57 frames. Since departing from Tampa Bay, Nathan Eovaldi has won two World Series, one with the Red Sox in 2018 and one with the Rangers this past year.

5. Rafael Soriano

Rafael Soriano led a significant career highlighted by his 207 career saves. Soriano is one of only 54 major leaguers that have reached 200 saves.

The Dominican born pitcher tallied 45 of his 207 saves with the Tampa Bay Rays in 2010, leading the league in that department. He would leave the Rays in free agency the following season as he was signed by none other than the New York Yankees. He didn't flourish with the Yankees however as he only accumulated 44 saves over a 2-year span.

Honorable mentions:

Rich Hill

Hill could probably be a member of many team combo lists as he has thrown a baseball for 13 different clubs. His time with the Yankees was extremely short as he only had 5.1 innings pitched for the club in 2014. However, the left-handed starter threw a full season in Tampa Bay as he went 6-4 with a 3.87 ERA.

Kirby Yates

Yates saw his best years in San Diego where he recorded a 2.55 ERA over 4 seasons. The Hawaii born pitcher didn't have the best luck in Tampa Bay or New York though as he finished both seasons with an ERA above 5.00 and only one save.