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Yankees Sign John Maine To Minor-League Deal

The Yankees are bringing a former Met on board, hoping he can return to solid pitching.

May 25, 2012, 4:11 PM UTC

John Maine of the New York Mets delivers a pitch against the Washington Nationals at Citi Field in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)

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The New York Yankees have had their share of starting pitching woes this season; so far, only CC Sabathia and the recently-returned Andy Pettitte could be considered anything close to "reliable" in their starting rotation.

Friday, the Yankees rolled the dice on a possible reclamation project. Andrew Marchand:

Looking to add depth to their pitching options, the Yankees have signed former Mets right-hander John Maine to a minor league contract, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman confirmed.

Maine, who hasn't pitched in the major leagues since 2010, is expected to be insurance if he can make the contributions that saw him win as many as 15 games with the Mets five years ago.

Maine, who had three decent-to-good years in the Mets' rotation from 2006-2008, pitched for Triple-A Colorado Springs in the Rockies' organization in 2011, and not well -- a 7.43 ERA in 11 starts. He went to spring training with the Red Sox this year, but was released by them a couple of weeks ago.

It’s a low-risk signing; teams make these all the time. Sometimes they work. If they don’t, it doesn’t cost the Yankees much in dollars or time.

For more on the Yankees, please visit Pinstripe Alley and SB Nation New York.

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