After much delay, two injured Yankees could begin rehab assignments in the near future.
That would be Giancarlo Stanton, who has yet to make his season debut after missing all of spring training with tennis elbows, and Marcus Stroman, who hasn’t pitched since April 11 due to knee inflammation.
Stanton has been hitting off high velocity for some time, and he started taking live at-bats more recently. The designated hitter has been working out in Tampa, which is where he’ll remain through the end of the week, according to Aaron Boone.
The manager said that the designated hitter could “potentially’ start a rehab assignment next week.
With Stanton expected to play through pain once he’s back, the Yankees will also have to figure out how they want to use the hard-hitting Ben Rice. He’s been the team’s primary DH, though he’s also spent some time at first. Rice is a natural catcher, but the Yankees have only used him behind the plate in blowouts.
Stroman, meanwhile, threw another live batting practice session at Yankee Stadium on Thursday after also facing hitters last Saturday at Dodger Stadium.
Boone said the righty threw about 40 pitches over two innings on Thursday and that his knee is in a “good spot.” Boone added that Stroman is close to a rehab assignment, but the skipper didn’t have exact plans in place. Stroman could throw another live BP session first.
Boone also said that Stroman is being built up as a starter.
“That’s the plan,” he said, “but we want to start stacking these days.”
Back in spring training, Stroman made it clear that he would not pitch out of the bullpen despite being sixth on the Yankees’ rotation depth chart at the time. He was just coming off a winter of trade rumors, but moving the veteran proved impossible due to his poor second half in 2024 and a vesting option that would have guaranteed him $18 million next season had he reached 140 innings this year.
There is now no chance of that option vesting, though that doesn’t necessarily make Stroman more moveable. He had some of the worst stuff in baseball before getting hurt, recording an 11.57 ERA over three starts. He had a 5.98 ERA in the second half last season and was held out of postseason action.
The Yankees, meanwhile, currently have a full rotation with Max Fried, Carlos Rodón, Will Warren, Clarke Schmidt and Ryan Yarbrough. Warren has an option and Yarbrough is a swingman capable of pitching out of the bullpen, but they’ve made stronger cases for a rotation spot — granted, with more opportunities — than Stroman. That’s especially true for Yarbrough, though Warren has shown signs growth despite some clunkers.
The Yankees also expect Luis Gil back from a lat strain this summer, potentially leading to more clutter in the rotation.
