For a few months, Luis Gil made the New York Yankees feel like they didn’t need reigning Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole. That turned out to be the start of a Rookie of the Year campaign.
The 26-year-old right-hander was named the winner of the 2024 American League Rookie of the Year award on Monday, becoming the 10th player in Yankees history to win the honor, the most of any team in the AL. Only the Los Angeles Dodgers (18) have more in the MLB.
Gil defeated Baltimore Orioles outfielder Colton Cowser to win for the award. He received a total of 106 points compared to 101 for Cowser. Gil received 15 first-place votes, compared to 13 for Cowser.
Gil joins the likes of Aaron Judge, Derek Jeter and Thurman Munson on New York’s list of ROY winners. It wasn’t a completely even season that got him there, but it was enough to establish him as a legitimate starting pitcher going forward. He was also the starting pitcher in the Yankees’ only win in the 2024 World Series (which did not factor into the BBWAA voting at the end of the regular season).
Gil won the award despite making his MLB debut three years earlier, when he pitched 29 1/3 innings in six starts in 2021. He retained his eligibility as a rookie because he pitched fewer than 50 innings and spent fewer than 45 days on the Yankees’ active roster. selection of that season.
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Gil might have been able to compete for the 2022 AL Rookie of the Year award had he not torn the UCL in his right elbow that season. He was sidelined until the end of 2023 and then made the Yankees’ rotation as the No. 5 starter out of spring training in 2024.
That rotation spot was open because top player Gerrit Cole missed the start of the season due to an inflammation of the right elbow. Gil took the opportunity and ran with it.
At the end of May, he had an ERA of 1.99, a WHIP of 0.974 and 79 strikeouts in 63 1/3 innings across 11 starts. Hitters hit .135 against him. That dominance helped replace Cole’s production at the top of the Yankees’ rotation, which was quite a story for a previously minor prospect that New York acquired for acquiring Jake Cave DFA and acquiring Gil from the Minnesota Twins in 2018 in a corresponding depth transaction. .
It seemed like an outrageous scam for the Yankees then and still looks more than one-sided now. However, Gil slowed things down after those first two months, posting a 6.45 ERA in June and a 4.20 ERA in the second half of 2024. He missed 15 days later in the season due to a lower back strain.
Towards the end of the regular season, Gil looked like a talented pitcher who sometimes struggles with control. He led the AL with 77 walks, but the total package of 151 2/3 above-average innings was still enough to make him the top rookie in the AL.
