New York Yankees pitcher Tim Hill (54) pitches during the fifth inning against the Cleveland Guardians in game two of the ALCS for the 2024 MLB Playoffs 

It may not be the big infield splash fans have been hoping for, but the New York Yankees at least got something done on Tuesday afternoon, re-signing lefty reliever Tim Hill to a one-year, $2.85 million deal that includes a team option for the 2026 season.

Hill isn’t Alex Bregman or Nolan Arenado, but his importance to the team’s chances in 2025 shouldn’t be overlooked. Acquired from the Chicago White Sox midway through last season, the veteran quickly emerged as one of Aaron Boone’s most trusted options out of the bullpen — and the team’s only reliable lefty. He pitched to a 2.05 ERA over 35 appearances with New York during the regular season and was even better in the playoffs, allowing just one run over 13.1 innings of work (one of the why Boone’s decision to let Nestor Cortes face Freddie Freeman late in Game 1 of the World Series was such a painful blunder).

Bringing Hill back checks a big box in the bullpen, which desperately needed a left-handed option for Boone to call on. And it does so at a more than reasonable price, especially considering some of the other reliever deals that have been handed out this winter. But this signing represents even more than getting a good player on a budget; it also represents some (very, very small) measure of revenge on the New York Mets, and a potential answer to newfound nemesis Juan Soto.

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Yankees keep Mets from adding Juan Soto nemesis Tim Hill

Prior to winding up back with the Yankees, Hill was courted by several other contenders, . While New York obviously came out ahead this offseason by poaching Soto from their crosstown rivals, they weren’t able to do so again, a fact that may or may not have to do with some interesting history between the two players.

Hill and Soto have a long history, one that long predates the few months they spent together in pinstripes. They were also teammates with the San Diego Padres in 2022 and 2023, and faced each other in the National League several times before that. Hill has gotten the better of those matchups so far, striking out Soto in all three plate appearances. But it doesn’t sound like he particularly enjoyed the experience, as he back in September.

”I remember his shuffle. He shuffled on me ball one and it pissed me off a little bit. I actually love the way he plays mind tricks with the pitcher because I remember it worked against me. It made me mad. And I was like, ‘Ugh!’ I wanted to get him. And I happened to. But also I think he baits guys, in a way getting in a pissing contest with him. Like, ‘All right, you want this?’ And then they’ll throw it, and he frickin’ whacks it out of the yard.”

Soto more or less acknowledges that his flamboyant style at the plate is at least in part strategic, saying that “at home plate you have to play it like a game of chess”. Whatever he’s tried, however, hasn’t worked on Hill so far.