The New York Yankees rotation just got significantly thinner, as rookie starting pitcher Luis Gil left Tuesday’s start against the Cleveland Guardians with lower back tightness. The Yankees would go on to lose by a score of 9-5 in 12 innings.
Luis Gil left Tuesday’s game with lower back tightness
Gil was clearly hampered by his injury as he struggled to gain command of the strike zone Tuesday night. He pitched a total of three innings, allowing three runs and three hits, walking six batters, and recording three strikeouts before exiting with the injury. At this time, no imaging is scheduled for the right-hander, according to MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch, though it is still unclear if Gil will have to miss a start or even go on the injured list.
If Gil were to go down, it would be safe to assume that Will Warren would take his place in the rotation. Warren has made three big league starts this season and is 0-1 with an 8.59 ERA, and has struck out 17 batters in 14.2 innings pitched. The Yankees are already missing Clarke Schmidt as he recovers from a lat strain, so they cannot afford to lose Gil for a large chunk of time.
The Yankees’ starting rotation has faltered over the past two months
The Yankees starting rotation has already shown signs of wear and tear as the season has progressed. After pitching great to start the year, Yankees starters are pitching to a 5.64 ERA since June 20, the worst in MLB. In that same span, they have allowed 1.78 HR/9 and are walking batters at an alarming rate with 3.46 BB/9. New York is 22-28 since June 20, which is fifth-worse in baseball.
The downward trajectory in the rotation’s effectiveness has led to some big questions about how New York’s playoff rotation should look like. Some have suggested putting Gil in the bullpen for the playoffs given that he is throwing a significant amount of innings as a starter, and now that scenario could be more realistic following his injury.
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Miraculously, the Yankees are only 0.5 game behind the Baltimore Orioles for first place in the American League East division despite the uninspiring play over the past two months. The rotation needs to turn things around as soon as possible with only about a month left in the season, and they will hope that Gil doesn’t have to miss much time and can be effective down the stretch and into the playoffs.