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Yankees’ Surprising Arm Could Throw Wrench in Rotation Plans

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Kristie Ackert | Last updated Jun 23, 2025 1:00 PM ET

Allan Winans isn’t just pitching for a spot in the Yankees’ rotation Monday night. He’s realistically pitching to beat out Marcus Stroman.

With Ryan Yarbrough on the injured list, Winans was called up to face the Reds in Cincinnati. It's a well-earned promotion after posting a 0.90 ERA over 50 innings at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Stroman, working his way back from a left knee injury, is scheduled to throw around 70 pitches Tuesday in what could be his final rehab outing. Manager Aaron Boone said Stroman will be “in the mix” to return after that.

The Yankees could plug him back into the rotation this weekend, especially with a soft landing spot available against the Athletics.

But NJ.com's Max Goodman suggested that the decision should come down to what happens Monday.

Winans has been dominant in the minors and is the latest product of a Yankees pitching department that’s turned scrapheap arms into real contributors. Now he’s getting a chance to carry that success into the big leagues. And if he does — if he throws five or six strong innings against Cincinnati — the Yankees might have a real decision on their hands.

Is Stroman, who had an 11.57 ERA over 9 1/3 innings before landing on the IL, really the best option? Even if you throw out the early-season results, he wasn’t sharp last year either. Stroman’s 4.31 ERA in 2023 was his worst full-season mark since 2018.

The rotation spot in question comes back around next Sunday.

That means the Yankees could roll with whoever looks better this week,

Winans has the chance to make that choice easy Monday night. All he has to do is shove

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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