The New York Yankees have declared the departure of right-handed pitcher Marcus Stroman. The organization made the announcement earlier today.
His exit follows the Yankees’ acquisition of relief pitchers David Bednar, Camilo Doval, and Jake Bird (along with utility player José Caballero) leading up to Thursday’s MLB trade deadline. In his concluding appearance for the Yankees, Stroman surrendered four earned runs and six hits, while securing three strikeouts, in a 7-4 victory against the Tampa Bay Rays. He conceded four earned runs in each of his most recent two outings.
Stroman, aged 34, posted a 6.23 ERA with a 3-2 record across nine starts for the Yankees this year. He managed to strike out only 26 batters in 39 innings pitched, matching a career-low average of six strikeouts per nine innings.
The Yankees are still obligated to pay Stroman the remaining $5.61 million on his contract for the current season, as reported by MLB Trade Rumors. He had previously signed a two-year, $37 million agreement with the Yankees. Any team opting to acquire Stroman will be responsible for paying him the prorated major-league minimum salary.
Stroman’s designated role for 2025 was uncertain during spring training, as the Yankees anticipated having a complete five-man rotation featuring Gerrit Cole, newly added free agent Max Fried, Carlos Rodón, the 2024 American League Rookie of the Year Luis Gil, and Clarke Schmidt. He maintained that he was primarily a starting pitcher and expressed reluctance to pitch in a relief role. Consequently, Stroman was associated with trade rumors throughout the spring season.
However, Cole underwent Tommy John surgery, while both Gil and Schmidt commenced the season on the injured list. (Schmidt’s season ultimately concluded with reconstructive surgery as well.) Consequently, Stroman effectively secured a position in the starting rotation due to unforeseen circumstances. However, he subsequently missed two months of the early season due to left knee inflammation.
Gil is scheduled to make his initial start of the season on Sunday against the Miami Marlins, which resulted in Stroman being removed from the rotation. Fried (12-4, 2.64 ERA) and Rodón (11-7, 3.18) are slated to occupy the first two spots in the Yankees’ starting staff, followed by Gil, with rookies Will Warren (6-5, 4.64) and Cam Schlittler (1-1, 4.91) assuming the final two slots.
In addition to releasing Stroman, the Yankees also recently traded Carlos Carrasco to the Atlanta Braves and reassigned Allan Winans to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to optimize their pitching personnel.
Throughout his 11 MLB seasons, Stroman has compiled a 3.79 ERA and a 90-87 record, averaging 7.4 strikeouts per nine innings. He has previously pitched for the Toronto Blue Jays, New York Mets, and Chicago Cubs before joining the Yankees.
