Right now, the New York Yankees know one thing about their rotation: Gerrit Cole will be the pitcher for the important Game 1 in Los Angeles. Beyond that, manager Aaron Boone is keeping his options open and hasn’t announced anything yet.
Aaron Boone is keeping his pitching options open
One can speculate, though, that Carlos Rodon will get the nod for Game 2 even though Clarke Schmidt might make a bit more sense for several reasons. Schmidt would take the ball in Game 3.
According to Yankees insider Andy Martino, rookie Luis Gil is the logical choice to take the hill on Game 4 in the Bronx. Again, nothing is official, but it appears to be where the team is leaning towards:
“The expectation is that Carlos Rodon will start Game 2 and Clarke Schmidt in Game 3. Word around the team is that Luis Gil is likely for Game 4, but the team has not yet finalized that,” Martino wrote.
The Yankees have to trust Luis Gil against the Dodgers
Gil is a legitimate AL Rookie of the Year candidate. In 151.2 innings of work in the regular season, he posted a fantastic 3.50 ERA. He was almost unhittable in the first two months when the Yankees looked invincible, and he ended up mostly exorcizing the control demons that plagued his career to this point.
He made his first start of the postseason in Game 4 of the ALCS against the Cleveland Guardians, allowing just two runs in four innings and giving his offense a chance to win.
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Gil can be a bit volatile and his control might come and go, but overall, he has given the Yankees a legit weapon to use both over a long season and in short playoff series. If he is indeed the man to take the ball for Game 4, fans should be happy about the team’s chances.
