New York Yankees’ ace makes an already challenging future Yankees choice much worse.
Luis Gil continues to dominate for the Yankees, which makes a future choice even more difficult.
The New York Yankees faced the arduous task of not just competing in an extremely competitive AL East division, but also doing it without their ace, Gerrit Cole. The Yankees had a miserable year in 2023, but Cole delivered on his half of the agreement, winning the AL Cy Young Award. It appeared that the Yankees were, in the best-case scenario, the second-best club in the AL East with Cole and would be at the bottom without him. It has not played out that way.
For much of the season, the Yankees had sole control of first place in the American League East. Having the incredible tandem of Aaron Judge and Juan Soto helps, as does having an excellent bullpen, but the Yankees’ starting rotation is the driving force behind their success. The Yankees’ starters have a 2.69 ERA, which ranks second in the majors. They lead the AL with that number.
Everyone has pitched well, but the best of the lot has been the guy who wasn’t meant to be in the rotation at all: Luis Gil, who took Cole’s place and has ran with it. Gil dominated again in Wednesday’s victory over the Los Angeles Angels.
Luis Gil continues to make a tough decision even harder for the Yankees after latest gem
Luis Gil is the HOTTEST PITCHER ON THE PLANET RIGHT NOW🔥
8.0 IP | 2 H | 1 ER | 9 K | 2 BB
ERA DOWN TO 1.99. UNREAL😤#Yankees pic.twitter.com/v7irLOYEeu
— Fireside Yankees (@FiresideYankees) May 30, 2024
Gil capped a successful month of May by pitching eight innings of one-run ball to defeat the Angels. He allowed only two hits and two walks while striking out nine.
Gil had one of the finest months for a pitcher in Yankees history, with a 0.70 ERA and 44 strikeouts in six May starts. If Gerrit Cole had a sub-2.00 ERA through May like Gil, Yankees fans would be ecstatic. Gil’s performance is truly astounding. At this point, the 25-year-old may possibly be considered for the AL Cy Young Award.
The right-hander has more than shown that he deserves to stick in the rotation and even be a part of New York’s future plans as a starter, but even after his latest start it’s unclear as if that’ll happen for a couple of reasons.
First, Cole is coming back from his injury sometime soon. There’s no clear return date yet, but he continues to progress in his rehab. Once he’s back, he’s going to need a spot in the rotation. With how good Cole is, the Yankees won’t want to run with a six-man rotation.
Second, Gil is coming back from an injury of his own. He threw just four innings in the minors last season coming back from Tommy John surgery. He has never thrown more than 96 innings in a single season, and that was back in 2019.
Gil deserves to be in the rotation, but the Yankees want him to be healthy and productive in October and in the long-term future. Keeping him in the rotation where he’d blow past his previous high in innings by a substantial margin might not be the way to achieve the organizational goals.
Gil clearly does not deserve any type of relegation, and each time he goes out and dominates, he makes the decision even more difficult. However, with no other starter ailing, the easiest and most likely outcome, even after his last performance, is for the Yankees to remove Gil from the rotation whenever Gerrit Cole returns. It’s not what anyone, especially Gil, wants to hear, but it seems like the most logical consequence, even after his recent masterpiece.
