DONE ON: New York Yankees pegged to land 26-year-old star for Tommy John

Luis Gil, Anthony Volpe help extend Yankees’ start to best since 1992 with win over Diamondbacks

PHOENIX — When news came down that Gerrit Cole would have to miss at least the first two months of the season with an elbow injury, there were questions about how the Yankees would survive.

It has only been five games, but they are 5-0 and his replacement continued to impress in his first regular-season opportunity Monday night.

There is no way to make up for losing the reigning AL Cy Young winner, but the Yankees are trying their best, with a relentless offense and on Monday, Luis Gil showing his new and improved stuff would play beyond the Grapefruit League.

In what was also his first start since undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2022, Gil’s blazing fastball carved up the Diamondbacks to help send the Yankees to their fifth straight win to start the season, a 5-2 victory at Chase Field.

“Electric,” said Anthony Volpe, who gave Gil a hand by recording the first four-hit game of his career with two doubles, two runs and an RBI. “His energy and his stuff — they’re a really good lineup and he was blowing it by them.”

The Yankees are now 5-0 for the first time since 1992 (which proved to be the most recent time the team has finished a season under .500) and only the fourth time in franchise history.

“Coming off the high of an Opening Day series against a big opponent and coming in here playing a really good team, just nice to make a big inning hold up for us,” manager Aaron Boone said. “First start of the year, coming off a big series, [Gil] set the tone for us early.”

With plenty of early run support from the offense, Gil struck out six while giving up just one hit and one run across 4 ²/₃ innings.

He did walk three, which helped drive his pitch count up to 84, at which point his night ended since he had built up to 75 pitches the last time out in a simulated game on Wednesday in Houston.

But by the time Boone got to the mound, the Yankees’ infield had already surrounded Gil with celebratory slaps on the back.
Before Boone took the ball, he shook Gil’s hand after the 25-year-old’s first major league outing since May 12, 2022 — 12 days before Gil underwent Tommy John surgery.

“After everything I went through to be able to get back and be here healthy and be able to compete here means a lot,” Gil said through an interpreter.

Gil lit up the radar gun, with five of his six strikeouts coming on his fastball at velocities of 98, 99 and 100 mph.

He mixed in enough changeups and sliders to keep the Diamondbacks off-balance, quieting them after they had piled up 32 runs in their first four games of the season.
Averaging 97.7 mph with his fastball (it averaged 96.1 mph when he made six starts for the Yankees in 2021), Gil carried his velocity into the fifth inning.

The second-to-last batter he faced, Jake McCarthy, struck out on a 98 mph heater.

Considering that Gil had hardly pitched at all in a year and a half entering spring training, the Yankees had optioned him to minor league camp on March 3 to give him time to build up properly.

A few days later they found out they would need a fifth starter with Cole injured, and Gil suddenly forced his way back into the picture with an impressive spring.

“He kicked the door in,” Boone said before the game. “We had other good options too for that spot and Luis, with the way he looked from jump in spring training, he earned that spot. If he goes out and executes, he can be as good as anyone.”

The Yankees gave him some early breathing room, picking up right where they left off in Houston.