Luis Gil's Road Back Takes a Detour

By Sal Maiorana

July 24, 2025

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Sal Maiorana, a friend of the site, shares his analysis on the New York Yankees on his free Pinstripe People Newsletter at https://salmaiorana.beehiiv.com/subscribe.

An edited version of a recent article follows...

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I’m no scout, but having witnessed in person Luis Gil’s third rehab start, and first at Triple-A, he’s not ready to come back to the Yankees.

Before Gil took the mound at Rochester’s Innovative Field Wednesday night, Aaron Boone was asked by reporters in Toronto if this would be the 2024 AL Rookie of the Year’s last rehab start if it went well and Boone said “not necessarily.” Well, it didn’t go well, so I would expect Gil will stay with Scranton Wilkes-Barre and make at least one more start.

Given that it wouldn’t happen until at least Tuesday, that means Gil wouldn’t even be an option for the Yankees until the first week in August, again, if that one goes well. Of course, the way the Yankees are playing right now, it might not even matter when Gil returns because they continue to sink further in the AL East standings after losing for the sixth time in their last seven games in Canada.

Maybe I’m wrong and maybe the Yankees will decide that Gil might as well come up and start using his live bullets for them, but they always play it cautious, especially with pitchers, and if the Rochester Red Wings could score five runs in 3.1 innings off Gil, yeah, he’s not ready to face big league hitters.

I knew almost immediately that it wasn’t going to be a great night for Gil. After the Rail Riders scored four runs in the top of the first inning, Gil’s first two pitches were 93 mph fastballs that Robert Hassell, one of the top Nationals prospects, fouled straight back. His third pitch was a 94.8 mph heater and Hassell crushed it for a no-doubt homer to right.

After throwing 22 pitches to get out of the first, Gil needed only 10 to go 1-2-3. He hung a terrible slider to Andrew Pinckney who ripped it to left but Everson Pereira made a nice diving catch. He struck out the next man on three pitches, then got an easy grounder to short.

But he found big trouble in the third and Rochester scored three runs to tie the game. Light hitting No. 9 batter Nasim Nunez blooped a single to right, and after he was erased on a fielders’ choice grounder by Hassell, Hassell stole second, Yohandy Morales walked on a 3-2 pitch, and Jose Tena beat out a swinging bunt where Gil fielded the ball but threw too late to first. Andres Chapparo just missed a grand slam, hitting a deep fly into left-field corner that scored a run, and Nick Schnell lined a double to right on a 94 mph fastball that plated two.

Gil started the fourth and his first pitch was popped down the right-field line where second baseman Andrew Velasquez made a tremendous catch, and then he went to a full count on the next batter and Rail Riders manager Shelley Duncan took him out because he was at the Yankees’ limit of 67 pitches which, of course, is the height of stupidity. Like, he couldn’t throw one more pitch to maybe get the out?

Reliever Kervin Castro came in, threw a ball so the walk was charged to Gil, and that man eventually scored to close out Gil’s unimpressive line: 3.1 innings, five runs on four hits and three walks with four strikeouts. His fastest pitch was 96.2 and he averaged 94.3 on his four-seamer.

As for Spencer Jones, the Red Wings cooled him off in the first two games of this six-game series. He came into town as the hottest hitter in Triple-A, but Tuesday he went 0-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout as the Rail Riders’ 11-game win streak ended, and then in a 12-inning victory Wednesday he went 0-for-4 with a hit by pitch, a run, an RBI and a strikeout.