Yankees add veteran left-hander Gio Gonzalez

With Luis Severino and CC Sabathia both expected to begin the regular season on the injured list, the Yankees needed to add some depth to their starting rotation. According to reports they’ve done just that by agreeing to sign veteran left-hander Gio Gonzalez to a minor league deal.

Over the past month, there have been rumors about the Yankees potentially signing Gonzalez so the news that broke Monday night isn’t a big surprise. This is a smart move by the Yanks and GM Brian Cashman given the uncertainty surrounding Severino’s return from injury and the fact that CC is expected to miss at least his first two starts through the rotation.

The Yankees have some talented options internally who could slide into the rotation in Luis Cessa, Domingo German and Jonathan Loaisiga, but none of them have the big league experience Gonzalez has had.

Gonzalez has enjoyed a very solid 11-year career with stints in Oakland, Washington, and Milwaukee. He’s a two-time All-Star and he’s finished in the top six in Cy Young voting twice. One thing Gonzalez has always brought to the table is durability and stability. So even though he’s no longer in his prime he’s still a very capable big league starter and a solid option to have at the back end of a rotation.

It’s unclear whether Gonzalez will start the year with the team because of how late into the spring he signed but if all goes well we should see him in the rotation at some point in April. Gonzalez has an opt-out clause in his deal on April 20th and he’ll make $3M if he makes the majors. He’ll also receive 300K per start and could earn up to $12M with incentives according to Jon Heyman of MLB Network.

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With the opt-out clause included in the deal, this is a zero risk high reward signing by the Yankees and one that could prove to be extremely important if Sevy can’t return at some point in May. Cessa and German also figure to get some starts early on in the season, but if they struggle as much as they did in 2018 Gonzalez will play an even bigger role.

What the Yankees can hope for from Gonzalez is that he gives them about four to five innings per start and keeps the team in the game when he’s on the mound. With their bullpen, they don’t need him to pitch deep into games. All they need is a guy they can rely on to stay healthy and give them some innings every fifth day.

Gonzalez isn’t going to dominate opposing lineups as he did during some of his years with the Nationals, but he is going to make an impact and help this Yankee team.