Yankees' Luis Gil named American League Rookie of the Year

When Gerrit Cole went down with an elbow injury in spring training, the Yankees turned to Luis Gil, who had pitched a total of four innings (all in the minors) in 2023 after coming back from Tommy John surgery.

The Yankees didn’t know what to expect. But they knew Gil was throwing the heck out of the ball in Florida in March.

They probably didn’t expect Gil to win the AL Rookie of the Year award in November. But that’s what happened when the 26-year-old righthander beat out Orioles outfielder Colton Cowser in a squeaker in voting announced on Monday night.

“Congratulations to Luis on an amazing season,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said in a statement. “He worked so hard to put himself in a strong position heading into spring training after coming back from Tommy John surgery. Without a guarantee of a major league spot, he absolutely kicked in the door this spring and went on to have a phenomenal rookie season. Luis continued to mature and develop all year and was one of the pillars of our rotation. I can’t wait to see what’s next for such a talented, young pitcher.”

Gil, who went 15-7 with a 3.50 ERA in 29 regular-season starts, edged out Cowser, 106 points to 101. Gil picked up 15 of a possible 30 first-place votes. Coswer got 13 and two other players (relievers Mason Miller of the Athletics and Cade Smith of the Guardians) received one first-place vote each.

Gil’s batterymate Austin Wells finished a distant third with three second-place votes and eight third-place nods for a total of 17 points.

Gil is the 10th Yankee to win the award and the first since Aaron Judge in 2017. The others are Gil McDougald (1951), Bob Grim (1954), Tony Kubek (1957), Tom Tresh (1962), Stan Bahnsen (1968), Thurman Munson (1970), Dave Righetti (1981) and Derek Jeter (1996).

“I'm so happy about being able to win this award,” Gil said through an interpreter. “Everybody in my corner, they're so happy for me right now, and so proud, and I'm also proud of the opportunity that was given to me by the team. It turned out to be a great season for me, a great experience, and I’m so excited. It just means so much to be in this space.”

The Yankees acquired Gil from the Twins on March 16, 2018, in a trade for outfielder Jake Cave. Gil was a raw 19-year-old who was pitching in the Dominican Summer League.

“We took a flier,” Yankees general manager Brian Cashman during the playoffs said last month. “One of those lottery tickets, and that's how it came out. He was so far away. Most of those times, the lottery tickets don't cash in, right? And in this rare occurrence, it did.”

Gil debuted with the Yankees in 2021, when he started six games. He opened with 15 2/3 scoreless innings to become the first pitcher in MLB history to pitch shutout ball in his first three starts. But Gil made just one appearance for the Yankees in 2022 before injuring his elbow.

Gil won his first 2024 award when he was named the AL pitcher of the month in May (6-0, 0.70 ERA). He struck out 14 White Sox batters on May 18. For the regular season, Gil shattered his career high by throwing 151 2/3 innings and striking out 171 (and walking an MLB-high 77).

He made two postseason starts, throwing a total of eight innings and allowing six runs in the ALCS vs. Cleveland and the World Series vs. the Dodgers. The Yankees won both of his postseason starts, including their only victory in the Fall Classic in Game 4. Voting took place before the postseason.

Pirates' Skenes wins NL ROY

   Paul Skenes’ record-setting first MLB season allowed him to take home some much-deserved hardware. The Baseball Writers’ Association of America announced that it had honored Skenes with its annual Rookie of the Year award for the National League. He is the second player in Pirates franchise history to win Rookie of the Year, joining outfielder Jason Bay, who did so after the 2004 season. Skenes is also a finalist for the NL Cy Young award, the winner of which will be announced on Wednesday night. - AP

By Anthony Rieber

anthony.rieber@newsday.comAnthonyRieber

Anthony Rieber covers baseball, as well as the NFL, NBA and NHL. He has worked at Newsday since Aug. 31, 1998, and has been in his current position since July 5, 2004.