Alexander Wilson
The New York Yankees already made Lagrange their most outstanding rookie of Spring Training before Monday happened. He won the James P. Dawson Award for a reason.
In 13.2 innings across four Grapefruit League appearances, the 22-year-old posted a 0.66 ERA, struck out 13 batters, and walked only four. His fastball averaged triple digits and touched 103 mph. Gerrit Cole called it “silly.” Max Fried said he had never seen velocity like that consistently over multiple innings. Austin Wells, who caught his final pre-Cubs outing, was blunt: “I don’t have any doubts he could help us right now.”
Then Monday happened. The Cubs roughed him up for 9 hits and 8 earned runs, with 4 strikeouts, 2 walks, and 2 home runs allowed. It was not the spring version of Lagrange anyone had grown accustomed to.
Put it in perspective before the concern spiral begins.
Context Matters Here
This was a spring training game in Mesa, Arizona, against major league hitters who are locked in and game-ready a day before Opening Day. The Cubs sent out established starters, not camp invitees working on secondary pitches. Lagrange is a 22-year-old who, before this spring, had never pitched above Double-A. He had been dominant against a mix of major league veterans and camp competition throughout March. On Monday he ran into a big league lineup operating at full tilt in the final hours before their season begins, and they hit him hard.
I have watched young pitchers get shelled in those circumstances more times than I can count. It almost never means what the box score suggests.
More than the outing itself, look at what the Yankees already knew heading into it. Boone said before options were finalized that the organization actually discussed keeping Lagrange on the big league roster. “I don’t know if we were ever going to break with him,” Boone told reporters, per NJ.com, “but I would say we’ve at least talked about it.” Brian Cashman told the New York Post that Lagrange had “opened a lot of eyes” and had “been fantastic.” The organization was not sending him to Triple-A because they were worried about his future. They were sending him there because he needed innings, not because he needed to prove himself.
Monday does not change any of that. It adds a line to the stat sheet and it will give him something to study on film. That is about it.
What He Has Already Proven
The spring was genuinely special. Eleven consecutive scoreless innings across his final three Grapefruit League outings before the Cubs game. A fastball with the kind of vertical ride that makes hitters look off even when they know it is coming. A sweeper at 83 mph and a cutter at 88 that he can throw for strikeouts against both sides of the plate. A changeup that generated over 40% whiff rate in 2025. And a mentality that even Boone made a point to emphasize when he delivered the news about Triple-A. “His work ethic, his confidence, his adaptability, his coachability, his competitiveness,” Boone said. “The buzz around him and the talk around him, he’s earned that with how excellent he’s pitched here.”
That is not how a manager talks about a pitcher he is worried about.
The Yankees are sending Lagrange to Triple-A Scranton rather than Double-A, which is the clearest possible signal about where they believe he is developmentally. He is not going there to find himself. He is going there to build innings, sharpen his command in a competitive environment, and stay ready for a call that everyone inside that organization believes is coming soon.
The Bottom Line
One rough outing in Arizona against a ready Cubs lineup is not a data point worth worrying about. Every pitcher in baseball, at every level, has a bad day. Shohei Ohtani gets tagged. Gerrit Cole gives up four runs in two innings. It happens.
What does not happen all that often is a 22-year-old throwing 103 mph with four legitimate pitches looking this polished this early. Monday was a bad afternoon, nothing more. The next time we hear from Lagrange, I expect it to be an announcement that he just got called up from Scranton, and based on what this spring showed, I do not think that call is more than a few weeks away.
More about:New York Yankees
