The New York Yankees optioned 27-year-old right-hander Bradley Hanner to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after Tuesday night’s game, ending his second brief stay in the majors this season, via the MLB transaction log.
The move clears a roster spot as the club prepares for starter Clarke Schmidt’s expected return from the injured list.
Hanner had been recalled only five days earlier, on Sept. 11, and made one appearance in that stint. He allowed four earned runs in 1.1 innings.
Across four big-league games this year, he has thrown 5.1 innings with a 11.81 ERA, seven strikeouts, and four home runs allowed.
That line is a sharp contrast with his work in the International League. In 45 relief outings for the RailRiders, Hanner is 6-3 with a 2.44 ERA, 65 strikeouts, and a 1.25 WHIP over 55.1 innings.
Earlier in the year, before his first call-up, those numbers were even stronger: a 2.10 ERA and 29 percent strikeout rate that ranked among the league’s best for relievers with substantial innings.
Hanner’s path to the Yankees was typical of a late-round, late-blooming reliever. The Minnesota Twins drafted him in the 21st round in 2019 out of Patrick & Henry Community College in Virginia.
He later spent time in Cleveland’s system, including a full Triple-A season with Columbus in 2025 (4.74 ERA). New York signed him as a minor-league free agent in December 2025.
When he triggered an opt-out clause in July, the Yankees added him to the 40-man roster and immediately optioned him back to Scranton rather than lose him.
He made his MLB debut Aug. 14 against Toronto, striking out the first two batters he faced before allowing a solo homer to Alejandro Kirk.
A mid-August option followed a roster crunch; the September recall was another short-term bullpen boost. The latest demotion is the third time this season the Yankees have sent him down after putting him on the 40-man. He remains in his first of three option years, so New York can shuttle him as needed.
The 6-foot-4, 210-pound righty does not overpower hitters. He sits in the low-to-mid 90s with a four-seam fastball and mixes a sinker, cutter, and sweeper that generates swings and misses.
Control has been a career-long issue, and major-league hitters have punished the mistakes more than Triple-A lineups did.
For now Hanner returns to a familiar role in Scranton, where he can work regularly while remaining a phone call away if the Yankees need another arm in September.
The organization has treated him as useful depth rather than a finished product. That assessment is unlikely to change until the results in the Bronx look more like the ones he posted in Pennsylvania.
