How the Yankees helped pitcher Ryan Weathers make it home just in time for the birth of his son

HOUSTON — It was, to say the least, a whirlwind of a week for Ryan Weathers.

The first-year Yankees lefthander and his wife, Thayer, witnessed the birth of the couple’s first child Wednesday morning at a hospital in Greenwich, Connecticut. 

Weathers, on three-day paternity leave starting on Wednesday, rejoined the team Friday at the team hotel in Houston, and earned a no-decision Saturday night with 5 1/3 grind-it-out innings in the Yankees' eighth straight victory, an 8-3 win over the Astros.

But there was more to it than that. Much more.

Because it was far from a certainty Weathers would make it to Greenwich in time to welcome his son, Paul David Weathers, into the world.

Weathers, mentally prepared that he might have to suddenly bolt the club at some point this week, nonetheless accompanied the Yankees to Boston on Monday because Thayer’s official due date was Saturday. He therefore was with the team as the three-game series against the Red Sox began on Tuesday.

But Thayer’s water unexpectedly broke around 4:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Little man decided to come early… Thank you Lord for a healthy baby and a healthy wife🫶🫶 pic.twitter.com/K91sli7aL2

— Ryan Weathers (@RyanDWeathers25) April 22, 2026

Naturally, her first call was to her husband.

But Weathers, asleep in his hotel room, accidently had left his phone in silent mode and did not pick up.

Thayer then called the Yankees executive director of team security, Mark Kafalas.

Kafalas has been with the club since 2009 and is one of those critical behind-the-scenes people of an organization the public knows little about, but who is invaluable to the players, in large part because of the help he provides their families. It can be anything from setting up tickets to looking after the safety of wives, girlfriends and/or children when they’re at games, home or on the road.

Or, in this case, contacting a player when a loved one can’t get in touch with them.

And it was Kafalas, Weathers told Newsday following Saturday night’s game, who actually woke him up with a call on his hotel room phone.

“I called her back immediately,” Weathers said, estimating he returned Thayer’s call maybe a minute or so after being woken up by the shrill ring of the hotel room phone and seeing on his cell phone that he had missed the call. “Everything moved quickly.”

Kafalas told Weathers to pack an overnight bag to take back to Greenwich, where the pitcher and his wife are living this season. Kafalas, after hanging up with Weathers, then called Ben Tuliebitz, the club’s longtime executive director of team travel. Tuliebitz quickly contacted a car service and, maybe a half-hour or so after being jolted awake by Kafalas, Weathers had been whisked away in a car, headed for the Greenwich hospital where Thayer had been taken.

But there was no guarantee the pitcher would get there in time, as anyone who has driven the I-95 corridor will tell you. In the best of traffic conditions, the drive from Boston to Greenwich can be as little as three hours. Rarely, would anyone describe those conditions using the word “best.”

But leaving as early in the morning as Weathers did gave him a fighting chance.

“It was pretty good,” Weathers said. “I just hit some traffic around New Haven, like work traffic, and that was really it.”

Weathers arrived at the hospital at 9:47 and Paul David was born at 10:04.

“It was crazy,” a still clearly dazed Weathers said multiple times Saturday night.

Weathers, who has a 3.21 season ERA after allowing two runs and six hits Saturday night, managed to go through with his between-start preparation, which included throwing a bullpen Thursday at Yankee Stadium.

He was on a plane Friday heading to Houston, giving him this travel itinerary the previous five days: a flight in the early-morning hours Monday to Boston (after the club’s annual Welcome Home Dinner started at 10 p.m. Sunday night because that day’s 1:35 p.m. scheduled start against the Royals got pushed some three hours because of rain); three-plus hour drive to Greenwich Wednesday morning; 3 ½-4 hour flight from the New York City area to Houston Friday afternoon.

“So good to have him back,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Was able to do what he needed to do between starts to be ready for tonight, and I thought he threw the ball really well.”

Weathers smiled and said, “no,” he had not been subjected to a lot of good-natured grief from his wife for having his ringer off when she called.

Yet.

“I’m sure eventually she will,” Weathers said, still smiling. “But I’m not on the hook right now.”