Though unheralded, Yates a sturdy bridge for Yanks

Since closer Aroldis Chapman made his season debut on May 9, the Yankees’ late-game trio of Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller and Chapman has provided an enormous boost. But the starting staff has struggled to reach the late innings. New York’s starters entered Wednesday with only 252 1/3 innings (an average of 5.73 innings per start), ranking 11th in the American League.

That’s why Kirby Yates has been extra valuable. The 29-year-old righty, who was acquired for just $78,000 from the Indians over the offseason after Cleveland purchased him from Tampa Bay, entered Wednesday having permitted just four earned runs over 18 1/3 innings this season, proving to be a quality bridge to the team’s dominant back-end crew.

It’s been a remarkable turnaround for Yates, who battled injuries and ineffectiveness last season. But this isn’t …

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