The New York Yankees will take the field to face the Cleveland Guardians on Monday night. It will be their first American League Championship Series appearance since being swept by the Houston Astros in 2022. Everybody in the organization is ready for an exciting matchup.
On Monday morning, the Yankees revealed their 26-man roster for the ALCS, and it has a couple of changes in comparison to the one they used to eliminate the Kansas City Royals in the AL Division Series.
Perhaps the most evident one is the inclusion of starting pitcher Marcus Stroman, who was left out of the ALDS roster because the team only needed three starters. But they also opted to leave Duke Ellis out.
The Yankees included Rizzo and Stroman, leaving Ellis without a spot
Ellis is a 26-year-old outfielder without much of an offensive game, but he has some serious wheels and is often included in the Yankees’ plans as a pinch-runner option. They did it against Kansas City and he saw action in Game 4, pinch-running for Giancarlo Stanton in the eighth inning.
For the ALCS, however, the Yankees are going with more pitchers and are likely relying on other options to pinch-run if needed, like Jasson Dominguez, Oswaldo Cabrera, and Jon Berti.
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Having a deep bench was a priority for the Yankees in the best-of-five set against the Royals, because they had multiple off days. Now, with more games squeezed into a tighter calendar, boasting a deep, effective pitching staff becomes more of a need and leaves Ellis (who doesn’t really contribute anything other than his baserunning skills) without a clear avenue for a roster spot.
The inclusion of Anthony Rizzo, who had to overcome two fractured fingers to return to the roster, likely had a direct impact on Ellis’ fate. The team, in the end, opted for first base stability over a pinch-running option for the late innings.
