The Yankees closed well Luis Gil after he was diagnosed with shoulder inflammation, manager Aaron Boone told reporters Friday (link via Greg Joyce of the New York Post). He will miss at least three weeks.
Gil, the 2024 American League Rookie of the Year, has had a frustrating year and a half. He missed the first four months of the ’25 campaign after suffering a major setback early in camp. Gil returned in August and managed a 3.32 earned run average in 57 innings. His strikeout rate was down 10 percent from last season, however, and he gave up a couple of homers to take the loss in his first Division Series game against the Blue Jays.
New York has been discovered Ryan Weathers during the offseason, pushing Gil to fifth on the rotation depth chart. A few early offseason days allowed them to use a four-man rotation for a few weeks, dropping Gil to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to open the year. He returned on April 10 and was beaten in three of his four rounds. The Yankees optioned him back to Triple-A on April 27. They gave the pair time to think. Elmer Rodríguez and you will receive it Carlos Rodón he returned from injury on Sunday.
Gil did not meet Scranton between his choice and today’s diagnosis. Boone, however, told reporters that the Yankees believe this is a new injury and was not a factor in his poor MLB performance in April. If it had been determined that Gil was injured while on the major league roster, the Yankees would have had to revoke the option and place him on the major league injured list. He will accumulate service time as long as he is not found in that state. Gil will not be granted service time if he remains on the Triple-A disabled list.
That’s a secondary consideration, which could be a moot point if Gil can right the ship to ensure the Yankees give him an arbitration contract. He won’t resume pitching until the end of May at best. Even if he’s cleared, he’ll need to improve in a series of bullpen/live hitting sessions before the Yankees can put him in a game.
Rodríguez and the newly elected Brendan Beck they are the only healthy starting depth on New York’s 40-man roster. Hope to throw hard Carlos Lagrangewho turned heads with an outstanding Spring Training, is not yet in the 40 man but is working out of the Triple-A rotation. He leads Scranton in hitting but has continued to battle his control issues for a long time and has gone five innings in the start. The Yankees continue to develop him as a starter, but he would be better suited to skip MLB as a pitcher if he makes an impact this year.
The Yankees’ rotation is in good shape despite a lack of experienced youngster depth. Rodón enters next to the front 4 Fried Max, Cam Schlittler, Is Warren and Weather – each of them the best hit so far. Gerrit Cole fourth start in his rehab from Tommy John surgery and a few weeks from his first MLB appearance since 2024.
