I give the Yankees credit where credit is due. They've done a good job of using the minor leagues and the waiver wire to put together the back end of a bullpen instead of spending lots of money on fungible relief pitchers past their prime.
Alfredo Aceves is a good example of this kind of pitcher. Signed out of Mexico as a free agent in 2008, Aceves shot through the minors as a starter in 2008 and wound up with a 2.40 ERA in six appearances for the Yanks at the end of the season. The Yankees didn't overestimate Aceves, though, and stuck him in the bullpen as a long man. He rewarded the Yanks (and his Rotisserie owners) with 10 vulture wins last season. He always seemed to be entering a game with the Yankees tied or behind and coming up with the win.
This obviously isn't a repeatable skill, but Aceves strikes me as a guy who's fine at $1 in the back of a Roto bullpen. He probably could be a 5th starter for more than a few teams, but all the talk in Spring Training about Aceves being in open competition for a spot in the rotation seemed like a smoke screen. Aceves will continue to work in the pen. He doesn't have a dominant out pitch, but his change is solid and probably his strongest offering.
I'd ignore the weak results in this year's small sample size. Aceves should continue to provide some value as a reliever in 4x4 and even a little in 5x5.
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