The New York Yankees pitching staff has been on an impressive streak in the month of May, with their stats constituting a historic run for the team. Where does it rank in franchise history and how long will this stretch last?
Yankees Pitching Staff on a Historic Run
Just two months ago, the MLB community was ready to chalk up the Yankees starting rotation as a weak point. Now, they’ve just done something that’s never been done before in the Bronx. Crazy how fast things change, huh?
After Luis Gil‘s stellar performance against the Mariners, the pitching staff became the first in team history to go 11 straight outings with at least five innings pitched and two or fewer runs allowed. What makes this even more impressive is that they did it without Gerrit Cole, the 2023 AL Cy Young winner.
Read all about it 🗞️ pic.twitter.com/DwISMtmuyV
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) May 23, 2024
Cole was injured during spring training and has yet to appear in a game this season. He’s expected to return in June, but the front office knew they’d be missing him for an extended period of time. GM Brian Cashman held strong and didn’t trade for any short-term rental arms, and it’s looking like a genius move. The rotation has been dominant on the bump, with each arm having a sub-3.30 ERA. As a whole, the entire pitching staff has compiled a 2.86 ERA, the best team ERA this season.
The pitching hot streak has coincided with a nice winning stretch for the Bronx Bombers, who have won nine of their last eleven.
How Long Can It Go?
Is this streak maintainable? Probably not. A rotational dominance where all players are at their best at the same time is so rare in today’s game. But that doesn’t mean this pitching staff can’t add a few more games to this run when they play the San Diego Padres next.
The tougher question will be: who will Gerrit Cole replace in the rotation? The ace’s near return will unfortunately slide one of the arms out of the starting five, but with everyone doing so well, how will the front office decide? It’s a tough decision for Cashman, but a good problem to have.
