The New York Yankees’ pitching staff is being held in high regard ahead of next season.
Yankees rotation rounds out ESPN’s rankings in top-5
According to a recent rankings published by ESPN’s Bradford Doolittle, the Yankees’ rotation was ranked No. 5 in the MLB. The top-ranked Seattle Mariners, followed by the Philadelphia Phillies (No. 2), Atlanta Braves (No. 3), and Los Angeles Dodgers (No. 4) all came in ahead of New York (h/t Phillies Tailgate).
The Yankees’ front liners are as elite as they come. They’ll roll into 2025 with 2023 American League Cy Young Award winner Gerrit Cole back as their spearhead. Right behind him will be marquee offseason acquisition Max Fried, who owns the third-best career ERA among all active starters in the Majors.
New York will have the luxury of deploying reigning AL Rookie of the Year Luis Gil behind them, who has ace potential already, and two-time All-Star Carlos Rodon to round out their top-four starters. Clarke Schmidt makes it a stout quintet.
The Yankees have everything they need to take the final step toward winning another World Series crown next time out. Each of those notable talents have a combination of flame throwing capabilities, strikeout dominance, elite contact management or all of the above.
Yankees will have stiff competition to outshine in 2025
As for the teams who were given a perceivable edge over the Aaron Boone-led ball club, the Mariners only had one of their six main starters post an ERA north of 4.00 last time out. The Phillies enter 2025 with four former or current All-Stars including National League Cy Young award runner-up Zack Wheeler and All-Star Cristopher Sanchez, as well as Jesus Luzardo rounding out that bunch.
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Meanwhile, the Braves field a talented unit led by reigning AL Cy Young honoree Chris Sale, though they lost both Fried and Charlie Morton, the latter of whom is now with the Baltimore Orioles. The Dodgers, when healthy, have a juggernaut ensemble that can shut batting orders down, highlighted by aces Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow, in addition to stars Gavin Stone and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Among the many talented casts that will take the mound and vie for supremacy next season, the Yankees will look to their core to help them recapture Fall Classic glory. They have the potential to perform better than the field, but that will be on them to make a reality.
