Luis Gil certainly earned himself another look at the major league level after tossing six scoreless innings in his big-league debut on Tuesday night.
Now, the 23-year-old will get a chance to prove that he has staying power with the Yankees.
As Gerrit Cole and Jordan Montgomery remain on the COVID-19 IL while Domingo German, Luis Severino, and Corey Kluber nurse injuries of their own, Gil is a necessary arm within the Yankees rotation, and will make his next start in Sunday’s series finale against the Mariners.
For Gil, the approach in his second outing will be more of the same, with hopes that he can replicate the same results.
“You want to stay with the same plan and approach that I had the last outing,” Gil said. “You want to keep it simple and just go pitch by pitch and hitter by hitter.”
Gil allowed just four hits and one walk through six innings of work against the Orioles in his debut, a pleasant surprise for a pitcher who has struggled badly with his command in the minors. Maintaining that control will be imperative in putting the Yanks in position to grab another crucial win on Sunday.
“The way that I was able to attack and throw a lot of strikes and get ahead in the count, that memory of executing pitches and the hard work that went into it,” Gil said. “You get a lot of confidence from it. At the same time, when you work as a team and you have a group of guys around you supporting you and everyone is working towards the same goal, it just makes you feel more confident and comfortable.”
Gil’s next start will likely be a tougher assignment, with opposing teams now armed with a full game’s worth of video on the young prospect, and will be able to use more preparation and make more rapid adjustments to try and solve the Yankees’ fourth-ranked prospect. But Gil believes as long as he maintains what he did in the Bronx on Tuesday, the results will remain the same.
“I think it has to do with the execution, really,” Gil said. “It was pitch by pitch, that was the focus. That’s what I’m looking forward to doing tomorrow with the support of my teammates. We’re looking for good results tomorrow as well.”
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