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Yankees' surprise Luis Gil demotion creates chaotic rotation, call-up possibilities

So, who's going where?
Adam Weinrib
Adam Weinrib

Yanks Go Yard

Apr 21, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Luis Gil (81) is relieved as they take on the Boston Red Sox in the seventh inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images / David Butler II-Imagn Images

If Luis Gil's personal schedule featured only the Red Sox over and over again, the man might have a puncher's chance to get in a rhythm. Unfortunately, superior offenses like the Astros and Angels keep cropping up, and his flat fastball has continued to leave the yard with increased regularity. The Yankees finally pulled the last straw after Sunday's sweep-crushing loss in Houston, demoting Gil to Triple-A after another subpar outing.

Who'll he be replaced with? That's anyone's guess, and it'll kind of make your head hurt.

The Yankees, with an off day Thursday, don't need a fifth starter until Saturday. Neither Carlos Rodón nor Gerrit Cole seems likely to be ready by then. Will Elmer Rodriguez get a one-start cameo? Are the Yankees more comfortable biding time with Paul Blackburn, Ryan Yarbrough, or an opener? It's an issue the Yankees don't have to solve for several days, but it's looming nonetheless.

So ... with that in mind ... who comes up for Gil in the interim? Extra reliever? Someone to balance out the force? Well ... maybe ... ?

Yankees might replace Luis Gil with ... Jasson Domínguez after demotion?

The Yankees are required to carry no more than 13 pitchers at any time (as we all know from the recent run of Shohei Ohtani-related pissfire), but carrying fewer than that - even with an electric starting rotation - seems somewhat silly. That said, budding insider Francys Romero believes Jasson Domínguez is on his way up after Giancarlo Stanton left Friday's game with calf tightness, then sat Saturday and Sunday.

Will the Yankees go one pitcher short while rostering both Jasson and Giancarlo? Is Stanton hitting the IL, and this is just one of two corresponding moves? And who goes down when Anthony Volpe has to come back from his rehab assignment mid-week? JC Escarra, the only optionable bench piece? Or whatever reliever slides up in exchange for Gil?

And just like that, the Yankees' roster construction puzzle has been stomped on, with Gil's poor performance coinciding with far too many halfway-ready rehabs and a position player glut.

Regardless of how things get sorted out, it's hard to confidently call Gil an MLB starting pitcher, at this point in time. This move, while chaotic, was highly necessary.

Adam Weinrib

Adam Weinrib

Adam Weinrib is a Content Director on the FanSided network, and has been the co-editor at Yanks Go Yard for 6 years. He also co-hosts The Baseball Insiders Podcast thrice weekly, alongside FanSided MLB insider Robert Murray, as well as the Yanks Go Yard Podcast. Previously, he was a Senior Editor at 12up.com, and has been covering MLB and NFL for 10 years. He was also a headline and features contributor at ClickHole and Onion Sports, as well as the Associate Producer of the ESPN 30 for 30 film "Believeland". An avowed fan of the New York sports teams -- specifically the Yankees -- as well as the North Carolina Tar Heels, you can find Adam complaining mid-game on Twitter, as well as on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn if the game goes really poorly.