The Yankees now know they’ll be taking on the Guardians in the ALCS when it begins on Monday, and manager Aaron Boone spoke to reporters (including Bryan Hoch of MLB.com) about the club’s roster plans for the coming series. Of note, Boone indicated that after bringing just 11 pitchers to the ALDS they’ll be expanding their pitching staff headed into the seven-game set, though it’s not yet clear whether they’ll use the maximum 13 pitchers allowed or settle for 12 in order to maintain a more flexible bench.
Regardless of how many pitchers end up coming, the Yankees will need to utilize four rotation arms in the upcoming seven-game series after turning to only Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodon, and Clarke Schmidt in the best-of-five ALDS. Per Hoch, Boone indicated that right-hander Luis Gil will be joining the club’s rotation for the ALCS, though neither he nor Gerrit Cole will start Game 1 with Cole scheduled for a start in Game 2 and Gil expected to start later in the series. That would seemingly leave either Rodon or Schmidt lined up to start the first game of the ALCS.
Schmidt has both the stronger regular season and postseason numbers of the pair, having posted a 2.85 ERA in 16 regular season starts and thrown 4 2/3 innings of two-run ball against the Royals during the ALDS. With that said, Rodon did strike out seven batters in his 3 2/3 innings of work during the ALDS (albeit with four earned runs on his ledger) and would be start Game 1 on an additional day of rest as compared to Schmidt. Veteran righty Marcus Stroman is also theoretically available to start if needed but seems likely to be used as a starter only in an emergency after being moved to the bullpen late in the regular season and being left off the ALDS roster entirely. Stroman could make the ALCS roster as a multi-inning reliever or emergency starter, though it’s also possible the club could want to add another short relief arm such as Mark Leiter Jr. to their bullpen mix headed into the series.
As the Yankees ponder how many pitchers to roster for the ALCS, one potential factor in that decision could be how many roster spots they need to allocate to first base. Veteran first baseman Anthony Rizzo was absent from the ALDS roster after suffering two broken fingers in the final days of the regular season. In his stead, the Yankees relied on a combination of Oswaldo Cabrera and Jon Berti at first base when facing Kansas City. The pair went a combined 3-for-12 with a double, four walks and four strikeouts during the series and could be turned to once again at first depending on Rizzo’s status.
Rookie Ben Rice was also on the ALDS roster as a first base option but ultimately did not make it into a game, making him a logical cut from the ALCS roster either for the return of Rizzo or the addition of another pitcher. Hoch relays that Boone told reporters the veteran first baseman was making “some progress” as he looks to return in time for the ALCS, though Boone didn’t get into specifics about Rizzo’s status and noted that a final decision about his availability likely would not be made until the club finalizes its roster plans on Monday.
One position that seems fairly set in stone for the Bronx headed into next week’s series, however, is left field. After a lackluster regular season that saw the Yankees briefly turn to top prospect Jasson Dominguez over him down the stretch, Verdugo received the nod in left field headed into the playoffs. While Verdugo went just three-for-14 in the ALDS this year, he did deliver a clutch performance in Game 1 where he notched two hits, knocked in the go-ahead run and made an impressive defensive play in the outfield to rob Royals second baseman Michael Massey of a hit.
Verdugo’s Game 1 heroics were evidently enough to earn him a starting nod in the left field headed into the ALCS, as Boone indicated (as relayed by Hoch) that the outfielder is “likely” to remain the club’s starter in left for their coming series against Cleveland. Dominguez, Trent Grisham, and Duke Ellis were other outfielders included on the club’s ALDS roster, Ellis’s brief cameo a pinch runner in Game 5 was the only appearance any of the three made during the series. If the Yankees ultimately decide to go to 13 pitchers on the roster, cutting one of those outfield options could be another way to free up space for more pitching.
YankeesBleacherCreature
Berti/Oswaldo are fine at 1B. Keep Rizzo out until the WS. Drop Ellis and Rice. Add the lefty Nestor if he’s ready in place of Tim Mayza. Add Stroman.
CravenMoorehead
I honestly don’t want to see Leiter at all in this series.
YankeesBleacherCreature
His propensity for giving up homeruns are going to be a problem at YS.
Mojo37
Craven
He will be crushed to learn the news this way. Please write him a note.
CravenMoorehead
I’ll DM him on Instagram when I’m done playing Sports Talk Baseball on Sega Genesis.
cooperhill
If Rizzo was in better shape, he wouldn’t get hurt so easy.
DRR
Better shape stop your fingers from breaking when they’re hit by a baseball?
Acoss1331
If Rodon can’t give the Yankees 5 innings then Steoman or Nestor should be deployed.
Mynameisnoname
Berti is a great play, even more so against LHP.
Especially as there’s not much speed beyond Volpe if Boone insists coin flipping between Verdugos propensity for bloop singles or weak, rolled over grounders.
Ignorant Son-of-a-b
Yankees in 4. The American League as a whole has been pretty MID this season. Yawn.
Steinbrenner2728
To be real honest, more entertaining than the 2024 Mariners, though/
Ignorant Son-of-a-b
The Mariners would have put up a better fight than the Royals at least.
whyhayzee
If you’re selling Guardians tickets outside the stadium, what do they call you???
Joe says...
If they get caught, the defendant.
ZackMorris
HAVE MERCY LoL!
TerryTurnbuckle
Aaron Boone should get serious consideration for AL Manager of the Year. Tremendous job guiding them through the adversity, making key lineup decisions that were best for the team, and doing so much with the limited talent on the roster.
cooperhill
LMAO, Boone is a punk!
TerryTurnbuckle
Better than Torre.
tumcjgrad99
You’re an absolute idiot turnbuckle!!! Torre managed the Yankees for 12 years, made the playoffs in all 12 years, won 6 AL pennants, and 4 World Series. How many AL pennants has Boone won? How many World Series Championships has Boone won?!!! Case closed and get educated!!!
TerryTurnbuckle
Torre .538 W/L %
Boone . 584 W/L %
Boone is the better manager.
mlb fan
“Boone is the better manager”..I’m not anti Aaron Boone per se, but I do believe a managing “app” could do just as well as Boone in managing the Yankees. The Yankees will always carry a top 5 payroll and can simply out-talent many other teams. On any of 25(or so) other teams, Boone would have been fired in the first 3 or 4 yrs.
I have not seen anything from Aaron Boone that suggests to me that he’s a top flight manager. In the only metrics that really matter(playoff wins)to the Yankees, Aaron Boone hasn’t even come close to doing as well as the manager that was FIRED before him, Joe Girardi. Suggesting he’s better than Joe Torre is ridiculous.
Edp007
I go by Sparky… when asked what makes him a great manager … without hesitation .. points to the clubhouse … “I give the ball to Tom “
TerryTurnbuckle
Torre inherited Buck’s team.
Bob Brenly also won a World Series after inheriting Buck’s team. Joe Torre is just Bob Brenly.
MLB-1971
Boone is an idiot, so I hope the Yankees keep him forever.
Anthony maresca
Omg ur nuts! Boone sucks and has no business being a manager period!
TerryTurnbuckle
If they surrounded him the way the 1950’s Yankees surrounded Stengel with talent, he’d have more championships and we’d be talking about his HOF induction.
clubberlang
300 million dollar payroll managers don’t win Manager of the year lol.
TerryTurnbuckle
It’s more difficult managing a 300 than a 150. More pressure, higher expectations, and bigger egos in the clubhouse. Boone has done an outstanding job and the 29 other teams use him as a base model.
brucenewton
Boone loses 120 games with a 150 million dollar payroll. Easily.