NEW YORK, NY – The Yankees’ decision to non-tender right-handed reliever Mark Leiter Jr. last week was a calculated, financial roster move, but for the veteran pitcher, the cut was only the beginning. The real, emotional blow came at home, as he broke a painful silence on social media, revealing a family storm, midnight tears, and a candid realization that his future is entering a phase baseball never prepared him for.
Leiter Jr., who was acquired by the Yankees at the 2024 trade deadline and made 59 appearances in the 2025 season, was non-tendered to save his projected $3 million arbitration salary.
The Midnight Tears and the Family Storm
In a raw and vulnerable post, Leiter Jr. confirmed the emotional chaos that followed the Friday afternoon non-tender deadline. He painted a picture of the stress and uncertainty that grips a professional player’s family the moment the security of a guaranteed contract is stripped away:
“The call from the GM was 30 seconds, but the conversation with my wife lasted four hours. The hardest part of this life is the constant instability. Watching my daughter ask if we have to move again broke me. I spent the first night as a free agent fighting back midnight tears because the paycheck is gone, but the promise to my family isn’t.”
Leiter Jr.’s comments have resonated across the league, providing a rare, painful glimpse into the high-stakes human cost of the business side of baseball. His post referenced a “family storm”—the sudden and terrifying uncertainty of where they will live and where his children will go to school next season.
A Future Baseball Never Prepared Him For
The right-hander, who comes from a long line of professional baseball players (including his father, Mark Leiter Sr., and uncle, Al Leiter), noted that despite the years of minor league grind and the constant focus on pitch metrics, he was fundamentally unprepared for the non-baseball aspect of his current situation.
“You spend your life training for the ninth inning, the big spot, the next pitch. No one trains you for calling your agent and saying, ‘We need to find a home before we find a job.’ That’s a future baseball never prepared him for.“
Now a free agent, the 34-year-old Leiter Jr. (who finished the 2025 season with a 4.84 ERA) is in a crowded bullpen market competing for limited spots, with the added pressure of needing to find stability for his family immediately. The Yankees saved their $3 million, but the Leiter family’s future is now the price of that financial flexibility.
