The New York Yankees had a roster crunch after the flurry of moves they made at the MLB trade deadline, which saw them bring in three new relievers. After optioning two relievers on Thursday, the Yankees cut ties with veteran right-hander Marcus Stroman on Friday.
The Yankees sent Ian Hamilton and Yerry de los Santos to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after Thursday’s game, and Stroman was released Friday afternoon to make room on the 26-man roster for Camilo Doval, David Bednar and Jake Bird.
Stroman is still owed the remainder of his $18.5 million salary. The Yankees held a vesting option on Stroman for 2026 if he eclipsed 140 innings, but that was impossible after he spent two months on the injured list with knee inflammation.
The Yankees signed Stroman during the 2024 offseason after losing the Yoshinobu Yamamoto sweepstakes to the Los Angeles Dodgers. It turned out to be one of Yankees general manager Brian Cashman’s worst signings in recent history. Stroman finishes his Yankees career with a 4.69 ERA in 193 2/3 innings pitched, the 11th worst since the start of the 2024 season.
Stroman was an All-Star with the Chicago Cubs in 2023, but the 34-year-old has seen his velocity and stuff drop over the past two seasons with the Yankees. His 86 Stuff+ is the fourth worst since the start of 2024. His fastball velocity averaged 90.1 mph, the third slowest in the sport.
Before Stroman returned to the rotation after his IL stint, Yankees manager Aaron Boone was direct in what the veteran needed to do to have success.
“He’s gotta command it,” Boone said. “That’s the biggest thing, is being where he wants on the plate, having a presence on both sides of the plate. Can’t just live on one side.”
By releasing Stroman, the Yankees are showing faith in rookie Cam Schlittler, who possesses a fastball that can touch 100 mph. Schlittler needs to improve on his secondary offerings, but he’s shown potential in his first three starts.
The Yankees were also facing a starting rotation crunch with Luis Gil set to make his season debut Sunday in Miami. Gil effectively takes Stroman’s spot in the rotation, which should theoretically make the Yankees’ starting rotation more formidable the rest of the season.
(Photo: Luke Hales / Getty Images)
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