Nestor Cortes turned in a third straight strong outing on Monday night, as the lefty looks to solidify a spot in the Yankees’ playoff rotation.
Meanwhile, Luis Gil could be back after the minimum stay on the IL as he works his way back from a lower back strain that forced him to leave his last start.
So, with a potential pitching crunch on the horizon, Jerry Recco says Gil should be moved to the bullpen to form a formidable combo that could be reminiscent of one of the Yankees’ most memorable seasons in franchise history.
“I’d put Gil in the bullpen,” Jerry said. “I know he’s a kid and he has to build up the arm strength…you almost wonder if getting him to the bullpen when he’s back - he has electric stuff, and if he only has electric stuff for an inning or two…if Holmes is your guy, maybe he’s your eighth inning guy in the postseason.
“What if a gave you this comparison? Rivera to Wetteland, and Gil to Holmes…we’re talking stuff here. I’m comparing the stuff here, and comparing what I can see as the next Mariano Rivera in Luis Gil. The kid is electric. I’m just saying, I can see it.”
Wetteland and Rivera formed perhaps the most dominant bullpen duo in baseball in 1996, as Rivera burst onto the scene to the tune of a 2.09 ERA across 107 innings, while Wetteland was an All-Star, finishing with a 2.83 ERA and a league-leading 43 saves. Holmes has blown 10 saves this season but holds a superior 2.72 ERA, and his 10.2 strikeouts per nine innings is actually better than Wetteland’s 9.8 K/9 in ’96. Of course, the results were there for the duo that helped Joe Torre create “The Formula,” which called for six innings from the starter, two from Rivera, and one from Wetteland, but Jerry wonders if Gil’s undeniable stuff could make him a lights-out bullpen arm while easing his innings load. The Yankees turned a starter into an eighth inning man in 2009 in the form of Phil Hughes, which worked out wonderfully. Perhaps they take that road again?
C-Lo isn’t ready to utter Rivera and Wetteland’s names, but at this point, Gil seems like a strong option to move to the bullpen.
“If you’re gonna go Cole, Rodon, Nestor, and Stroman as your starters…Cole is a given. Those other three guys, none of them are guys that I think project well for the pen,” C-Lo said. “I think Gil and Schmidt serve more of a purpose out there. Gil’s arm should play up and Schmidt has experience with it.”