Category: Sports News

Following their 7-4 loss to the Houston Astros on Sunday, the Yankees optioned right-hander Luis Gil to the minors after he struggled on the mound once again.

Outfielder Jasson Dominguez is being called up from Triple-A, according to multiple reports. (Dominguez's call-up could be the corresponding move for Gil, or could be related to Giancarlo Stanton's injury status, as the Yanks said they would make a decision on whether the DH needed a stint on the IL ahead of Monday's game against the Rangers.)

Gil lasted just four innings in New York’s series finale in Houston and allowed six earned runs on five hits, including two home runs, three walks and a hit by pitch. 

“His velocity was there, his pitch movement was there, but, unfortunately, we missed locations and those guys in the other clubhouse didn’t miss,” said catcher J.C. Escarra. “Two big home runs there with men on base.”

Through four starts this season, the 27-year-old is 1-2 and owns a 6.05 ERA (1.34 WHIP) with nine strikeouts in 19.1 innings. Gil has also allowed the most home runs (six), walks (11) and earned runs (13) among Yankees starters despite pitching 12 fewer innings than anybody else on the staff. 

“Just been struggling to get consistency with his, I think, delivery and fastball profile,” said manager Aaron Boone. “Again, we’ve seen flashes of it. It feels like it’s getting better in some ways and then the secondary: some good, some miss.”

The 2024 AL Rookie of the Year began the season with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre despite having no injury designation but failing to impress the organization enough in spring training, where he had a 4.66 ERA in six starts and allowed 20 hits, including six home runs, in 19.1 innings. 

In one start for the RailRiders, Gil went 4.2 innings and allowed three earned runs on four hits and four walks. Still, the right-hander was called up on April 10 when he made his season debut against the Tampa Bay Rays and allowed three earned runs in four innings during that outing.

Since then, aside from a strong start against the Boston Red Sox, Gil has been the weak link of a very good starting rotation that ranks second in the majors with a 2.90 ERA and who has reinforcements on the way with aces Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodon nearing returns from injuries.

“Just gotta pass the page on this one and concentrate on the next one,” Gil said through an interpreter after the game.

HOUSTON — Luis Gil was already on the clock, but the Yankees sped it up after his clunker Sunday afternoon.

Deep in the heart of Texas, Gil got deep-sixed against the Astros and then got sent packing for Triple-A after a 7-4 loss at Daikin Park, as the Yankees decided not to wait around until Carlos Rodón returns from the injured list early next month.

Gil, the weak link in what has been a strong rotation, gave up six runs in four-plus innings with plenty of loud contact, including a pair of two-run homers that put the Yankees (18-10) in an early hole and helped snap their eight-game winning streak.

Equally as troubling as the hard contact was the lack of swinging and missing. The Astros made contact on all 22 of Gil’s four-seam fastballs they swung at. He generated only three whiffs overall on the 34 swings they took.

“It’s tough when you’re falling behind and you’re not consistent with the secondary or that consistent velocity and profile of the fastball to get them off some of the secondary,” manager Aaron Boone said before Gil was optioned. “A combination of not quite good enough command, the stuff not being as good at is when Luis is at his very best. Add that up and you struggle to get that swing and miss.”

With an off-day coming Thursday, the Yankees do not need a fifth starter again until May 5. If they stick to their original plan with Rodón — who is expected to need at least two more rehab starts, the next one coming Wednesday or Thursday — that would likely mean needing a spot start from someone like Elmer Rodríguez. They could also turn to Paul Blackburn or Ryan Yarbrough, who have served as long men in the bullpen, and carry an extra reliever instead.

Gil, who started the year in the minors because the Yankees did not need a fifth starter out of the gates, posted a 6.05 ERA across four starts. His best one came against the lowly Red Sox on Tuesday, when he tossed 6 ¹/₃ scoreless innings, but even then his stuff was not very sharp.

On Sunday — the first start of Gil’s big league career in which he did not record a strikeout — his fastball velocity actually ticked up a bit but still lacked effectiveness. He described the lack of swing and miss, which was a central part of his standout season in 2024 as the AL Rookie of the Year, as “frustrating” and likened it to a “bad slump.”

“That’s what we’ve been working on, to be more consistent executing a good fastball with good velo,” Gil said through an interpreter. “We’ve been working on all that stuff together, to be better at that. When you have a little more velo, you can create more swing and miss. But little by little, I think I’m getting there. Just got to keep working.”

Now, the 27-year-old right-hander will be working on that back at Triple-A.

Gil’s rough start snapped a strong stretch of starting pitching that had fueled the winning streak. The six runs he allowed nearly matched the number of earned runs (seven) the Yankees had allowed in their past eight starts combined.

“Just been struggling to get consistency with his delivery and fastball profile,” Boone said.

Christian Walker crushed a two-run homer off Gil in the first inning — on a changeup down the middle — before Isaac Paredes clobbered a sinker for another two-run shot in the third. Gil gave up a walk and a double to the first two batters he faced in the fifth before Boone decided he had seen enough, with both of those runs eventually coming in to score against Blackburn.

The Yankees, meanwhile, mustered only three hits in seven innings against Astros starter Spencer Arrighetti — one being Aaron Judge’s 10th home run, a solo shot in the sixth inning on his birthday, to make it a 7-1 game.

They later mounted a two-out rally in the ninth to push across three runs, but it proved to be too little, too late.

Despite a terrific outing from Sean Burke, the White Sox couldn’t hit the ball this afternoon, collecting just four singles over 10 innings. Both teams carried zero runs into extra innings, and the White Sox fell to the Nationals, 2-1, in the 10th to collect the series loss.

Bryan Hudson, who opened for Burke, had a clean first frame for the second straight game. Chase Meidroth started with a leadoff single, advanced on a balk, and stole third on a wild pitch with two outs. Alas, it was all for nothing for one of the few White Sox hitters to make it to third base today, as Everson Pereira struck out.

The game moved on at a quick pace, with neither offense mounting any rallies, or landing anything for extra bases. As Burke continued to shut down Nationals batters, Foster Griffin was doing the same for Washington.

However, while Griffin worked at a solid starters’ efficiency (91 pitches over seven innings), Burke again shifted into super-efficient mode, pitching to contact and trusting his defene. Burke threw just four pitches in the top of the seventh, and pitching into the eighth got three outs with nine pitches. Overall, Burke went 7 1/3 innings using just 76 throws. That may have yielded just four strikeouts, but in stifling the Nats to just two singles and a double, who cares?

Nasim Nuñez started the top of the ninth with a single off Burke. Nuñez, who is known for his speed, stole second and advanced to third when Drew Millas flew out to center. Manager Will Venable collected his pitcher, but not before a standing ovation for an incredible outing.

Sean Newcomb came in to face the top of the order with a runner on third and just one out. Wood was intentionally walked, which worked out in favor of the Sox, as the last two Nationals both managed pop-outs to end the threat.

The White Sox ended up having just as frustrating a ninth inning. Everson Pereira singled with one out in the bottom of the ninth. Richard Lovelady, now pitching for the Nationals, tried to pick off Pereira but instead threw the ball away, allowing the runner to advance to second. After Tanner Murray walked, it came down to Derek Hill with two outs, but he struck out on three pitches and sent the game to extras, 0-0.

Seranthony Domínguez stepped in for the Good Guys, but faced a runner on third with just one out after a productive ground out by Jorbit Vivas to start the frame. CJ Abrams screamed a liner to left-center, which Murray made an incredible diving catch for the out — but a run scored to put Washington up, 1-0. (Murray left the game after a shoulder injury from the catch.) Coming in to pinch-hit, José Tena destroyed a center-cut fastball on 3-1 to put the Nationals up, 2-0.

That insurance run would prove valuable to Washington, as Tristian Peters had an RBI single to send ghost runner Hill home with one out, making it just a one-run game with one out. But Chase Meidroth and Miguel Vargas both went down on strikes, giving the White Sox 13 total by game’s end.

Offense was thin on the ground for the Mariners in their series finale against the Cardinals, but once again the bats were able to produce just enough for a 3-2 win, neatly bookending the 3-2 win from the series opener with a wild, potentially season-altering one sandwiched in between. As Victor Robles would say: sorry ‘bout it, that’s a sweep.

As was the case in the series opener, the starting pitching and bullpen teamed up to hold down the Cardinals offense, although it took Emerson Hancock an inning or so to lock in. After getting a first pitch flyout, Hancock labored through the rest of the first inning, falling behind hitters and giving up some hard contact on the ground and in the air, as well as walking Jordan Walker in a 3-1 count. But Hancock escaped without damage, able to bail himself out of trouble with an inning-ending strikeout on the changeup. Hancock used his changeup heavily today as well as his cutter, backing off the sweeper, which seemed difficult for him to harness. A shot on the broadcast of Hancock being tended to for the team trainer for a blister or torn fingernail might explain that.

Hancock’s stuff might have been too crafty for the Cardinals hitters, as they BABIP’d him to death with a bunch of little low exit-velocity hits. Behold this curséd image:

However, the only damage the Cardinals hitters were able to make out of that was off a solo home run from JJ Wetherholt, who tattooed a Hancock sinker at the top of the zone over the right field fence. Said fence now bears an outline of Luke Raley, who made a heroic yet unsuccessful attempt at the kind of home run robbery that has tortured the Mariners so far this season:

Ahhh you’ll get ‘em next time, Luke.

Meanwhile, the Mariners also struggled to get their hits to add up to anything off Cardinals starter Michael McGreevey, who completed six innings with a season-high six strikeouts. The only damage he allowed was a solo home run to Cal Raleigh, making the curious choice to serve Cal a changeup, a pitch he slugged .500 on last season. Thank you, I guess?

The Cardinals would go ahead in the sixth on a home run from the very annoying Nathan Church, who got ahold of a Hancock changeup he was able to drop the barrel on and smoke (110.1 mph EV) for a solo homer. But that was all the damage against Hancock today, who gave the Mariners and their tired bullpen a solid six innings. It’s especially impressive considering Hancock was working without one of his best weapons in the sweeper, and a testament to his ability to limit damage by limiting the free passes he hands out; last year, Hancock walked 8.1% of the batters he faced; this year, that number so far this season is 3.8%. As long as he can keep batters off the bases ahead of those solo homers and keep the weak-contact hits from stacking by not making things worse for himself, that’s a very different Emerson Hancock from previous years – and one who pushes the Mariners into interesting decision-making territory when Bryce Miller is able to return.

After McGreevey was finally out of the game the Mariners were able to tie it up against Matt Svanson in the seventh. Connor Joe brought some of that BABIP luck back the Mariners’ way, poking a little hustle double into left field, and Cole Young brought in the tying run with a nice piece of two-strike hitting.

This was especially nice for Young, who had been having a bit of a rough game offensively – he recorded the Mariners’ first hit of the day, but was thrown out trying to stretch it to a double, and then in his next at-bat, he struck out on three pitches in a largely noncompetitive at-bat, stranding a runner, and looking very frustrated with himself. Kudos to Young for shaking that off and coming up clutch, in addition to providing a steady hand at second base.

Also deserving kudos: the bullpen, which provided three scoreless innings between Gabe Speier, Eduard Bazardo, and José Ferrer, allowing no hits and not letting the Cardinals have any breathing room. Special kudos to Ferrer, who earned his first save as a Mariner, stepping in for Andrés Muñoz and not making the moment look too big for him.

Meanwhile, the Cardinals bullpen couldn’t do the same for their starter, save for former Mariner Ryne Stanek, who magically found pinpoint command and struck out all three hitters he faced. But the tax the Mariners offense put on the Cardinals bullpen showed up in the ninth, as the Cardinals turned again to lefty JoJo Romero, who had a 12-pitch outing yesterday. Romero wasn’t sharp, but somehow got ahead of pinch-hitter Rob Refsnyder 0-2 thanks to a disastrous first-pitch strike call from home plate umpire John Bacon. Bacon went to punch out Refsnyder on a changeup that was even further outside than his first blown strike call and Refsnyder challenged immediately, turning a strikeout looking into a 1-2 count. Ref kept battling in the box, taking pitches that were well off the plate and fouling away the one that was close until he got a sweeper right in his happy zone that he crushed for a go-ahead homer.

I wish this clip had the full broadcast video because it’s endearing for so many reasons: Justin “Champ” Novak the bullpen catcher, who catches the ball; Cooper Criswell popping up over the bullpen fence like a wacky waving inflatable arm man to celebrate; Refsnyder forgetting he’s supposed to take the trident; and how happy the whole dugout looks for him. Refsnyder, with his positivity, high baseball IQ, and leadership, has been a quick favorite among his peers, and you can really see how much he’s valued by his teammates by the warmth of his reception. Postgame, Refsnyder gave credit to all his teammates and especially called out Cole Young for his game-tying single while also calling him the best defender in baseball; he also said yesterday’s game felt like a special win for the team. Could this be the lightning moment this season has needed? The Mariners head to cold, rainy Minnesota tomorrow to find out.

The Texas Rangers scored a run but the Orion Arm Athletics scored two runs.

No doubt about it, the Rangers made some mistakes today.

First of all, they played a baseball game while up only one game above .500. As we know, that’s a guaranteed loss. If you’re asking me, given the circumstances, they probably should have just skipped this one.

Secondly, they got a few runners in scoring position here and there, and even had some dreaded bases loaded opportunities. As we know, that only means those potential runs were guaranteed to not score as they did in all but one of nine attempts, with the one success coming on a bunt single that didn’t even score a run. When they loaded ‘em up with no outs in a one-score game, they went strikeout, strikeout, flyout.

Third of all, they had Josh Jung in the lineup which wasn’t great because when Josh Jung doubled twice Josh Jung couldn’t follow Josh Jung because Josh Jung was already on second base so without Josh Jung at the plate, as we know, the Rangers had no hope of doing damage.

Player of the Game: Ironically, the person who perhaps made the worst mistake of the game (outside of Chris Young for signing Danny Jansen) was also probably the team’s best performer today (outside of Jung but he’s been in this space pretty much exclusively over the last few weeks).

Kumar Rocker started the game with two quick outs on four pitches and then walked the next two batters on nine pitches to bring up Carlos “Barry Bonds” Cortes.

Despite me never having heard of this person just weeks ago, Cortes has torched right-handed pitching this season and has feasted on Texas pitching in the seven games they’ve played in the season’s first month so of course, after working the count full, Cortes hit a two-out, two-run triple laser over the head of Evan Carter to score Not-Oakland’s two runs.

From there, however, Rocker settled in nicely and gave the Rangers six innings of two-run ball for an otherwise quality start marred by a bit of wildness or pacificity allowing the wrong guy at the wrong time up to do damage in what would ultimately be the game’s fateful moment.

Up Next: The Rangers will next welcome the New York Yankees to town for the last leg of the current homestand. RHP Jack Leiter is expected to pitch for Texas in the opener opposite LHP Max Fried for New York.

The Monday evening first pitch from The Shed is scheduled for 7:05 pm CDT and will be aired on the Rangers Sports Network.

HOUSTON – As good as the Yankees looked during their eight-game winning streak, they ended it on Sunday with an all-around stinker.

Deep in the heart of Texas, Luis Gil got deep-sixed while his previously red-hot offense did not come alive until the ninth inning, resulting in a 7-4 loss to the Astros at Daikin Park.

Gil, who only has a few more guaranteed starts in the big leagues before he is likely to be the odd man out when Carlos Rodón returns from the injured list, did not do much to help his case on Sunday.

The right-hander gave up six runs across four-plus innings with plenty of loud contact, including a pair of two-run homers that put the Yankees (18-10) in an early hole.

Equally as troubling as the hard contact was the lack of swing-and-miss. Gil did not record a single whiff on the 22 four-seam fastballs the Astros (11-18) swung at, and only generated three whiffs overall on the 34 swings they took. 

Gil’s clunker snapped a strong stretch of starting pitching that had fueled the Yankees’ winning streak. The six runs he allowed nearly matched the amount of earned runs (seven) the Yankees had allowed in their last eight starts combined.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

Aaron Judge, meanwhile, provided the only offense in seven innings against Astros starter Spencer Arrighetti, who allowed just three hits. On his 34th birthday, Judge crushed a solo home run, his 10th of the year, to get the Yankees on the board in the sixth inning, cutting the deficit to 7-1.

The Yankees mounted a two-out rally in the top of the ninth, with RBI doubles from Paul Goldschmidt and J.C. Escarra and an RBI single from Ryan McMahon. But it proved to be too little, too late.

Gil’s day got off to an inauspicious start, when he walked leadoff hitter Carlos Correa on four pitchers. Two outs later, he threw a 3-2 changeup down the middle to Christian Walker, who clobbered it for a two-run shot that came off the bat at 109.8 mph.

In the third inning, Gil got two quick outs before Yordan Alvarez smoked a single and Isaac Paredes followed by crushing a 95 mph sinker off the left-field foul pole for another two-run homer that made it 4-0.

Then in the fifth, Gil gave up a walk and a double to the first two batters, at which point Aaron Boone decided he had seen enough and went to the bullpen.

Paul Blackburn entered and immediately fell behind 3-0 to Paredes, who got the green light and roped an RBI single.

Walker followed with a double to the gap that drove in two more runs for the 7-0 lead.