Yankees to open with four-man rotation, leaving Luis Gil’s roster spot uncertain

TAMPA, Fla. — Two seasons removed from capturing the 2024 American League Rookie of the Year trophy, right-hander Luis Gil may not break camp with the New York Yankees when they open the regular season this week.

Manager Aaron Boone confirmed Sunday that the club will deploy a four-man rotation through the season’s first turn, an alignment that renders a fifth starter unnecessary until April 11. Max Fried will take the ball on Opening Day against the visiting Tigers, followed by Cam Schlittler, Will Warren and Ryan Weathers in subsequent games.

The decision leaves Gil, 26, in roster limbo. Rather than travel north with the team, he will remain at the Yankees’ minor-league complex and throw a 85-pitch live batting-practice session on Wednesday. Because Gil has one minor-league option remaining, the Yankees can assign him to Triple-A for the first two weeks and recall him as early as April 9, when a fifth starter is first required.

Pitching coach Matt Blake said the club has not ruled out using Gil in a piggyback capacity behind Weathers on Monday, April 7, in Seattle, though that scenario appears less likely after the club’s recent bullpen calculations. New York would like to retain Rule 5 pick Cade Winquest as well as relievers Brent Headrick and Jake Bird, moves that become easier if Gil begins the year in the minors. Veteran swingmen Ryan Yarbrough and Paul Blackburn are available for multi-inning work if the bullpen is pressed for length.

Gil’s final spring outing on Friday offered encouragement. Facing the Baltimore Orioles, he struck out seven over five innings, generated five swings-and-misses on his four-seam fastball—the most he has recorded this spring—and unveiled a new sinker. The Yankees had spent the preceding week tweaking his release point in an effort to restore deception on the heater, his primary weapon.

“I think we feel good about the adjustment he made going into the last outing,” Blake said. “He got the quality of the fastball back, the velo was up, the miss. All of those things are important to see. Now it’s just a matter of what that looks like in the first couple of weeks in the season.”

Optioning Gil would afford him continued repetitions in a controlled environment while the big-league club sorts through early-season roster logistics. Blake emphasized that the organization still views Gil as a starting pitcher long-term.

“I think he’d like to obviously be a starter with us,” Blake said. “He understands the position we’re in, which is the way the schedule lines up for the first two weeks in particular. Now it’s just a matter of making sure we do right by him and make sure we keep him in rhythm and then find the best balance for the bullpen and our starting group.”

The Yankees have yet to finalize their back-end relief corps, but the math points toward Gil beginning 2026 on the farm, leaving the club’s three bubble relievers on the Opening Day roster.