The Yankees are expected to extend a rotation spot to veteran right-hander Carlos Carrasco, despite his struggles over the past two seasons. The 37-year-old came into spring training as a minor league invitee, but with injuries taking a toll on the rotation, the Yankees appear ready to keep him around.
Carrasco’s Inconsistencies and Recent Spring Resurgence
Carrasco hasn’t exactly been the model of consistency in recent years. He posted a 5.64 ERA over 103.2 innings in 2024 and an even worse 6.80 ERA in 2023. He’s been plagued by inefficiency, allowing too many home runs and too much hard contact. However, the Yankees are seeing some encouraging signs this spring, where Carrasco has logged a 2.45 ERA over 11 innings.
He’s also generating more strikeouts, sitting at 9.82 strikeouts per nine innings while maintaining an impressive 98.4% left on base rate and a 56% ground ball rate. Jack Curry of the YES Network reported on Monday that the Yankees are intrigued by Carrasco’s swing-and-miss stuff, a sign that he’s likely to crack the starting rotation.
Injuries Force the Yankees’ Hand
The loss of Gerrit Cole for the entire 2025 season and Luis Gil’s high-grade lat strain have left the Yankees scrambling for arms. Carrasco has an opt-out in his contract on March 22, but with the Yankees needing rotation depth, both sides appear ready to continue their partnership.
That could mean sending young right-hander Will Warren back to Triple-A to start the season, even though he’s been outstanding this spring. Warren will undoubtedly pitch plenty of innings for the Yankees this season, but the team seems to prefer keeping Carrasco around for now.
Concerns Over Velocity and Long-Term Reliability
The biggest concern with Carrasco is his declining velocity. He averaged just 91.8 mph on his fastball last season, and while the Yankees have noted a slight uptick this spring, it’s still on the low end.
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Despite that, Carrasco did rank in the 79th percentile in chase rate last season, which explains why the Yankees believe he still has something left in the tank. He primarily relies on a four-seam fastball, slider, changeup, and sinker. None of those pitches were particularly effective in 2024, so the Yankees will try to squeeze as many innings out of him as possible before they inevitably turn to Warren for a more permanent role.