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The New York Yankees made a splash at the trade deadline, pulling Camilo Doval away from the San Francisco Giants in hopes of bolstering their bullpen. On paper, the move made sense. Doval had been an All-Star in 2022, his slider and fastball combo giving hitters nightmares. But so far in pinstripes, he’s been far from dominant. And now, Yankees play-by-play announcer Michael Kay has decided to go public with his concerns.
Doval’s Rocky Start in the Bronx
Doval’s time with New York has been anything but smooth. Across 15 appearances, he holds a 4.97 ERA and an alarming 1.895 WHIP. His strikeout ability is still there, but his command has evaporated. The right-hander has racked up walks, wild pitches, and even pitch clock violations—turning what was supposed to be a stabilizing addition into another stress point for a bullpen already weighed down by Devin Williams’ inconsistencies.
Williams, who arrived with a reputation as one of the game’s nastiest relievers, owns a 5.60 ERA and has already blown multiple saves. Combine that with Doval’s control issues, and suddenly the Yankees’ relief corps looks shaky heading into October.
Michael Kay, who has never been shy about critiquing players, summed up the situation bluntly on a recent broadcast.
“Doval, to be frank, is not what the Yankees traded for,” Kay said, via NJ.com’s Adam Zagoria. “This guy was an All-Star with the Giants, and his stuff, as Paul [O’Neill] said, is electric, but he has really struggled with passed balls and wild pitches and walks and pitch clock violations as well. They need to get him straightened out as they head into October.”
Kay isn’t wrong. Doval has looked more like a project than a playoff weapon. But given Kay’s own recent track record, maybe he should think twice before delivering lectures.
Kay’s Bizarre Analogy Overshadows His Point
Just days before criticizing Doval, Kay made headlines of a very different sort. On his ESPN New York radio show, he attempted to defend manager Aaron Boone against fans who were upset that Boone attended a UNC football game on an off day. Fair enough—until Kay decided to bring up hotel room orgies and trapeze acts.
Yes, you read that right. Kay argued that fans shouldn’t care what players or coaches do off the field, asking rhetorically: What if they were “having an orgy in their hotel room”? Then he upped the ante with a trapeze visual, depicting people flying through the air during an orgy.
The comments earned him a feature on Awful Announcing and widespread ridicule online. Suddenly, the voice of the Yankees sounded less like a veteran broadcaster and more like someone auditioning for late-night comedy.
So when Kay turns around and critiques Doval’s performance, it lands differently. He’s not wrong about the numbers, but his credibility has taken a hit. It’s hard to lecture a struggling reliever about staying focused when you’ve just introduced the phrase “trapeze orgy” into the sports discourse.
The Yankees need Doval to rediscover the form that made him a shutdown closer in San Francisco. They also need Williams to stabilize, and for the rest of the bullpen to hold up against Toronto and Houston in the playoff race. But maybe Michael Kay should stick to analyzing sliders and fastballs, and leave the bizarre analogies out of it.
Because right now, Doval isn’t the only one struggling with control.
Alvin Garcia Born in Puerto Rico, Alvin Garcia is a sports writer for Heavy.com who focuses on MLB. His work has appeared on FanSided, LWOS, NewsBreak, Athlon Sports, and Yardbarker, covering mostly MLB. More about Alvin Garcia
