{"id":83426,"date":"2024-08-18T16:44:10","date_gmt":"2024-08-18T20:44:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/?p=83426"},"modified":"2024-08-18T16:44:10","modified_gmt":"2024-08-18T20:44:10","slug":"luis-gil-roy-importance","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/baseball\/2024\/08\/18\/luis-gil-roy-importance\/","title":{"rendered":"The Yankees’ Most Valuable Pitcher Hasn’t Been Their Ace"},"content":{"rendered":"

Coming off winning the 2023 American League Cy Young Award, 33-year-old Gerrit Cole<\/a> was expected to be the anchor of the Yankees’ rotation this season. But this has not been the case. Instead, rookie Luis Gil<\/a> has shone as the Yankees’ breakout starter. Ironically, Gil was given a shot in the rotation due to an injury that Cole sustained in March, and he ran with it. Until June, he was arguably a favorite in the Cy Young conversation; and though he has cooled off, he’s still been plenty solid.<\/p>\n

Though pretty much out of the running for the Cy Young, Gil still has a legitimate shot at winning AL Rookie of the Year. And not only has he been a pleasant surprise, but he’s also been New York’s most reliable pitcher in 2024.<\/p>\n

Luis Gil’s Breakout Season<\/h2>\n

More Than a Rookie<\/strong><\/h3>\n

In terms of competition, the race for AL Rookie of the Year has essentially come down to three players. In addition to Gil, there is Baltimore Orioles outfielder Colton Cowser<\/a> and fellow Yankee Austin Wells<\/a>. Thus far, Cowser appears to be the clear-cut favorite. Batting .247\/.325\/.447 with 18 homers and excellent fielding, the award is Cowser’s to lose at the moment.<\/p>\n

Though Gil may not have the ending necessary to catch up, his rookie year has proven to be worth more to the Yankees than any award. The 26-year-old’s ERA of 3.25 is the lowest of the four Yankee starters with at least 120 innings, and his 3.1 brWAR is more than double that of second-place Nestor Cortes<\/a> (1.4). He also has 12 wins, second on the team to Carlos Rodon<\/a>‘s 13.<\/p>\n

Gil’s numbers are not crazy by any means, but he has been invaluable as a solid starter in a season where starting pitching<\/a> has been heavily lacking for New York.<\/p>\n

But Can He Pull It Off?<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Just because Gil doesn’t need to win ROY to prove his value doesn’t mean that it wouldn’t be nice, right? If he can finish August strongly and put together a great September, it just may be in the cards.<\/p>\n

Let’s look at May, by far the righty’s most impressive month. He pitched 38 2\/3 innings, striking out 44, while also posting a 0.70 ERA and a 6-0 record. This insane stretch culminated in him winning the AL Pitcher of the Month for May. The likelihood of this happening again isn’t high, so let’s look at his second-best month, which is July.<\/p>\n

After a rough June, Gil had a bounce-back month, especially because of how badly New York struggled as a team. In five starts, Gil put up a 3.33 ERA, pitching 27 innings and striking out 33. He also limited his walks (by far his biggest problem), only issuing eight free passes. It’s pretty realistic to suggest that Gil could put up similar numbers to these further down the stretch, especially considering the lack of big offenses in the Yankees’ remaining schedule.<\/p>\n

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Luis Gil, Wicked 89mph Slider. ? pic.twitter.com\/O3RN65r9kF<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 13, 2024<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n