After a breakout 2023 season, Ian Hamilton entered the 2024 campaign with high expectations. He fell a bit short of those, however, tallying a 4.55 ERA over 27 games prior to landing on the injured list with a lat strain on June 18. Opponents slashed .287/.368/.391 against the righty over that span, making Hamilton less effective than the Yankees had hoped for. However, Hamilton recently returned from the IL. Since then, he’s looked more like the pitcher who posted a 2.64 ERA last season, tallying just one hit, zero runs, zero walks and six strikeouts over three appearances and 3.1 innings of work. It’s a small sample, but Hamilton has pitched like a potential difference maker for a bullpen that has lacked dependable relievers all season. Such was the case on Sunday, when he took over for Carlos Rodón with one out and a runner on third in the sixth inning. Hamilton went on to fan Boston’s Trevor Story and Danny Jansen before the Yankees eventually won, 5-2. Asked what’s stood out about Hamilton since his return, Aaron Boone said the pitcher has been “filling the zone.” “The stuff’s real crisp,” the manager continued. “I feel like his sinker, his heater and the slambio – he’s just been really sharp with really good stuff. I feel like I’m looking up there and it’s 0-2 all the time. Good to see.” Hamilton’s return coincides with the Yankees leaning into a matchup-based approach to the late innings. Clay Holmes was stripped of the definitive closer title on the team’s last road trip, and Luke Weaver and Tommy Kahnle have since recorded saves. Hamilton, a righty who is tougher on lefties, could also find himself looking for saves if he continues to shine, as he picked up two last season and did some closing in college and the minors. Brubaker Rehabbing Again JT Brubaker, acquired from the Pirates earlier this season, began a rehab assignment at Triple-A on Sunday. He had been rehabbing from Tommy John surgery at the time of the trade, but an oblique injury set him back in July. Boone didn’t rule out the righty helping the big league squad with a just a few games left in the regular season. “[Starting the assignment is] good because we thought we may lose him for the year, so we’ll see,” Boone said. “We’ll see how it goes. He certainly could be in the mix.” Brubaker, 30, pitched in 63 games for the Pirates from 2020-2022. Sixty-one of those games were starts. He has a 4.99 ERA for his career and hasn’t pitched out of the bullpen since his rookie season. Yanks Dump González The Yankees released Victor González on Sunday. The team had just placed the lefty on the development list, and he had been pitching at Triple-A since June. The Yankees designated González for assignment that month after he recorded a 3.86 ERA but some discouraging metrics over 27 major league games. The club had higher hopes for the 28-year-old, as the Yanks traded top prospect Trey Sweeney to the Dodgers for González and Jorbit Vivas, another farmhand, in December.