In 2025, Marcus Stroman has been... disastrous. And, honestly, even that may be underselling his performance in the Yankees' rotation thus far.
Through three starts covering just nine and one-thirds innings, Stroman has racked up a 11.57 ERA (6.52 FIP) while walking as many batters as he's struck out (seven). He was placed on the Injured List with left knee inflammation after his latest start, with Allan Winans coming up from Triple-A to replace him in the rotation.
New York Yankees rotation depth far thinner than fans expected
Try to think back to December, shortly after the Yankees signed Max Fried. Imagine being told that, as of April 14, just a few weeks into the season, Allan Winans would be taking starts for the team.
With all due respect to Winans, you would have thought I was out of my mind. Just about every outlet was vouching for the team to trade from its starting pitching surplus to land an impact bat after losing Juan Soto.
The team did trade Nestor Cortes (and Caleb Durbin) for closer Devin Williams, cashing in on a pitcher with a strong track record but no clear path to meaningful innings.
Even after the trade of Cortes, the Yankees' rotation stacked up like this:
1) Gerrit Cole
2) Max Fried
3) Carlos Rodón
4) Luis Gil
5) Clarke Schmidt
6) Marcus Stroman
7) Will Warren
That's not only a deep rotation, but it's also a very talented one. It was clear that the Yankees had no plans to replace Soto — instead, they were going to lean into the best pitching staff in the American League.
Well, so much for that idea. Cole is out for the season after undergoing the dreaded Tommy John surgery. Gil is on the 60-day IL with a lat strain that offers no clear timetable for a return. Schmidt is mercifully on a rehab assignment, though it's not promising that he's already dealing with shoulder troubles this early in the season.
All that attrition has left the Yankees with the following rotation:
1) Max Fried
2) Carlos Rodón
3) Will Warren
4) Carlos Carrasco
5) Allan Winans
Schmidt's eventual return will likely push Carrasco, he of the 7.71 ERA through 11 2/3 innings, out of the rotation and possibly off the team altogether.
But that won't solve this conundrum by itself. The Yankees are investing $90 million into their top three starters (Cole, Fried, Rodón), one of whom is out for the season and another who has a 5.19 ERA through three starts thus far in 2025 (Rodón).
And, as a reminder, Williams has struggled mightily as the team's closer thus far, with a 9.00 ERA in five appearances.
What was once thought to be the absolute strength of this iteration of the Yankees has turned into its most glaring flaw. That would be concerning if it was September... it's April 14.
A trade or signing is practically a must at this point. Spencer Turnbull is throwing for teams again — maybe he could be a band-aid on this gaping wound.
Whatever the Yankees do, they have to do it quick. This patchwork pitching staff is going to pitch the team out of contention if they aren't careful.