Kloffenstein and the Yankees agreed on a minor-league contract Sunday, Ari Alexander of 7 News Boston reports. Kloffenstein will join the Yankees organization after he produced a 6.26 ERA and 1.61 WHIP with 90 strikeouts over 82 innings in 19 appearances, including 16 starts, with Triple-A Buffalo in 2025. The right-hander also received an invite to the Yankees' spring training in February, where he'll look to impress to potentially earn a shot with the major-league roster in 2026.
Kloffenstein (shoulder) has posted a 2.38 ERA and 1.94 WHIP with a 15:9 K:BB across 11.1 innings so far this season at Triple-A Buffalo. Kloffenstein began the 2025 campaign on the injured list due to right shoulder fatigue. He'd looked sharp up until his last outing Saturday against Worcester, when he surrendered three runs on three hits and seven walks over 2.2 innings, his first earned runs allowed on the year.
Kloffenstein is dealing with right shoulder fatigue but recent underwent an MRI that came back negative, Keegan Matheson of MLB.com reports. Kloffenstein missed the final two months of the 2024 season with a right shoulder injury, so it's certainly not ideal that he's still battling shoulder issues. However, the expectation is that he'll be ready to resume throwing in a few days. If healthy, Kloffenstein projects to open the 2025 season in the rotation at Triple-A Buffalo.