There’s always going to be risk in acquiring a 35-year-old starting pitcher. Father Time is undefeated, and Uncle Injury is the #1 contender. The Yankees are taking on both with the signing of Corey Kluber, who will turn 35 in April, and has only pitched 36 big-league innings since 2018. Grains of salt and caveats abound when discussing what we think Kluber can be this season, but I tend to think that his repertoire provides a reason for optimism.
Power pitchers usually have some transitional period as their fastball dies. Yankee fans should know this better than most — we watched CC Sabathia go from a hard-throwing lefty to a cutter/slider reliant fourth starter, who was effective if in short bursts.