New York Yankees right-hander Luis Gil will undergo Tommy John surgery, manager Aaron Boone announced Saturday. Gil exited his Triple-A start Wednesday night with the injury. He threw a pitch, pointed to his elbow, and called for the trainer. The surgery will take place in the coming days.
The 23-year-old Gil made his MLB debut last season and gave the Yankees a nice boost while filling in during some COVID-related absences. He pitched to a 3.07 ERA with 38 strikeouts in six starts and 29 1/3 innings last year, and allowed four runs in four innings in a spot start last week. Gil has spent most of this season in Triple-A.
Prior to the season our R.J. Anderson ranked Gil the No. 3 prospect in New York's system. Here's a snippet of his write-up:
He has easy gas, with his fastball coming out of his hand smoothly at 96 mph. To think that his heater plays faster than that, even, thanks to a deep release point. Gil also throws a slider that generated whiffs on nearly 40 percent of the swings taken against it ... The only things preventing him from becoming a mid-rotation starter or better are his lagging changeup and his troublesome command. He's battled poor location throughout his career, suggesting he might end up in the bullpen, likely in a late-inning role.
Tommy John surgery typically comes with a 14-16 month rehab timetable these days, putting Gil on target to return at some point in the second half of next season. This will be Gil's second major arm surgery -- he missed the entire 2016 season following a shoulder procedure while in the low minors.
The Yankees' rotation has been excellent to date, with Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes, Jordan Montgomery, Luis Severino, and Jameson Taillon combining to start 37 of the team's 38 games (Gil started the other game when a doubleheader necessitated a spot start). New York's rotation ranks second in baseball with a 2.99 ERA and fourth with 3.9 WAR.
With Gil sidelined, the Yankees figure to lean on righty Clarke Schmidt and lefty JP Sears as their next-in-line starting pitchers. The Yankees have a doubleheader against the White Sox on Sunday and will need another spot starter in the coming days.
