Feb 27, 2026; Fort Myers, Florida, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Luis Gil (81) throws a pitch against the Minnesota Twins in the second inning during spring training at Lee Health Sports Complex/Hammond Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Yankees' Luis Gil Shows Flashes of Old Self

Originally posted on New York Yankees on SI
By Joseph Randazzo | Last updated Mar 5, 2026 8:00 AM ET

Luis Gil has been up and down for the better part of a year. Despite finishing 2025 with a 3.32 ERA over 57 innings with the New York Yankees, it was clear he wasn't the same dominant pitcher he was in 2024, when he won the AL Rookie of the Year award. Though the earned run average is a success by conventional standards, a drop in velocity and his strikeout rate plummeting were huge red flags.

With one option left, though, Gil has to prove to his ball club that 2025 was the aberration. This spring is a great time to prove that.

Even if Carlos Lagrange, Elmer Rodriguez, and Ben Hess continue to dominate in the way they do, though, the Yankees are likely to choose him Gil them if they had to, giving a role to a more seasoned arm.

Jim Rassol-Imagn Images

Vs. Boston

In Gil's most recent start, he showed flashes of his old self against the Boston Red Sox spring squad. Gil tossed three scoreless innings in 56 pitches. He struck out six, allowed two hits, and two walks as well.

The most encouraging part of Gil's start wasn't the zero he put up in the earned run column, but his ability to generate swings and misses. The Red Sox took 31 swings in total. They whiffed on eight of them.

Gil's most dominant strikeout came in the third. He pumped three straight fastballs into the zone against Trevor Story. He fouled off the first two, which were 95 MPH heaters. Then, Gil went upstairs, and Story whiffed on 97.9 MPH.

All six Luis Gil strikeouts from his spring start against the Red Sox! pic.twitter.com/Kv9rN4xkdb
— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) March 4, 2026

His velocity was up slightly from last year. In 2025, Gil averaged 95.3 MPH on his fastball. Against the Sox, Gil averaged 95.7. This is still not quite the old Gil, though. In 2024, Gil averaged 96.6 MPH on his fastball. He's still a mile per hour less than the norm for him.

Starting the Season

Gil has as good a shot as any to make the team on Opening Day. The starting rotation will be without its two horses, Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon, to start the season. A strong spring should make a big difference for him, and that start against Boston was a start.

Of course, if the Yankees aren't happy with Gil's stuff and want him to build up a little more, which he wasn't able to do last year, he does have an option left. He could always do that in the minors while somebody like Rodriguez or Lagrange can take his place for the time being.

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This article first appeared on New York Yankees on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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