Yankees Rookie Introduced Himself to the World This Spring

Gerrit Cole stole the show for the New York Yankees, but given the gravitas the ace of staff commands and how long it had been since he last pitched, it isn't so surprising that he dominated the headlines. It was a joy watching him throw, simply because he was even on the mound, but as a viewing experience, he wasn't the best pitcher the Yankees trotted out that day.

The award for best performance by a starter goes to the youngster Carlos Lagrange, who, pending health, will be on his way to the big club in 2026. Lagrange did what he has done all Spring, better than anybody in his most recent start. That's dominating batters and getting outs.

Feb 27, 2026; Fort Myers, Florida, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Carlos Lagrange (84) throws a pitch against the Minnesota Twins in the fourth inning during spring training at Lee Health Sports Complex/Hammond Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

On the day, Lagrange threw 17 pitches that were over 99 MPH. 9 eclipsed 100 MPH, and the rest were around 99.

With that high heat came the swings and misses. It was another dominant performance, where he generated 11 whiffs in the 29 swings the Red Sox took against him. Then, when the Sox did make contact, they struggled to do anything significant. They had an average exit velocity of 86.6 MPH against him, and, specifically, 89.8 MPH against the heater.

After the start, Lagrange lowered his ERA to .66 in four appearances in the Spring. He struck out 13 in 13.2 innings and had a .73 WHIP.

High Praise for the Rookie

After the game, manager Aaron Boone commented on just how great Lagrange was. According to him, the biggest surprise was his ability to command the strike zone and his dominant secondary pitches.

"He's shown some pitchability and the strike throwing," Boone said, according to the New York Post's Grey Joyce. "We've obviously heard a lot about the stuff, but I've been excited about — again, you see it today — the ability to land the secondary stuff, to get back in counts or to finish off at-bats. As good as his fastball is, it's the secondary stuff that makes you really good. … There's a lot to be excited about with him."

Back from the World Baseball Classic, catcher Austin Wells had some high praise for Lagrange as well.

"I don't have any doubts he could help us right now," Wells said of the rookie. "I don't know what the process is of what that's going to look like, but the way he pitched today, he could definitely get a lot of outs for us."

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