Former Cleveland Guardians Ace Could Be Rotation Option For Wounded New York Yankees

Carlos Carrasco is reportedly just out of the rotation, but with injuries to Luis Gil and Gerrit Cole, Carrasco could find himself making meaningful starts in New York at some point soon.

New York Yankees pitcher Carlos Carrasco (59) pitches against the Minnesota Twins in the second inning at Lee Health Sports Complex on Feb. 25. | Chris Tilley-Imagn Images

Former Cleveland Guardians ace Carlos Carrasco could be an option for the New York Yankees as they deal with their wounded starting rotation.

According to Max Goodman, who covers the Yankees, Carrasco is the sixth man on the depth chart right now, even in the wake of serious injuries to Luis Gil and Gerrit Cole. However, Carrasco could potentially pass top pitching prospect Will Warren by the end of spring training as there are two-plus weeks left of Grapefruit League play. If the Yankees don't want Carrasco to leave the organization, they may also feel inclined to put him in the rotation at the beginning of the year, putting Warren in Triple-A.

Carrasco has a 2.35 ERA in 7.2 spring training innings this year.

Carrasco has spent 15 years in the big leagues, including 12 with the Guardians. He's 110-103 for his career, but he had a stretch from 2015-2018 where he went 60-36. He won an American League-best 18 games back in 2017 and was part of a vaunted Cleveland staff that included Cy Young winner Corey Kluber and future Cy Young winner Trevor Bauer at one point.

The Guardians got to the World Series in the 2016, falling to the Chicago Cubs.

A native of Venezuela, Carrasco was traded to the New York Mets before the 2021 season as part of the deal that sent Francisco Lindor to Queens. He came back to Cleveland last season, posting a 3-10 record with a 5.64 ERA. The Guardians advanced to the American League Championship Series but Carrasco didn't pitch in the playoffs.

Of course, the on-field accomplishments are just part of the story for Carrasco. He was diagnosed with Leukemia back in 2019 but was able to overcome it, finishing that season at the big-league level and also pitching through the pandemic-season in 2020 as well.

The Yankees open the season on March 27.

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