Even as the Yankees struggle with midseason growing pains, Luis Gil remains a strong option in the starting rotation.
He’ll take the mound at Citi Field on Wednesday, looking to bounce back from the worst start of his career.
Before giving up eight runs in 1 1/3 innings against Baltimore last week, Gill had the fourth-best ERA in MLB and was the No. 1 pitcher in opponents’ batting average as of Tuesday.
Putting this misstep aside, Gill’s dominance was the product of consistent control within the zone.
He is striking out 10.73 batters per nine innings, highlighted by a fastball that averages 96.6 mph and has a strikeout rate of 25.9.
The Mets chase pitches outside the zone far more frequently than the Yankees, who maintain one of the most disciplined eyes in baseball with a league-worst 25.1% chase rate.
The Amazings have the eighth-lowest contact rate in the league in chases, which should be an advantage for Gill, who is 15th overall in whiff rate.
Mets starting pitcher Sean Manaea has struggled to allow base runners to get on base early with walks, which has led to him pitching more batters and less time in games.
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Manaea has failed to pitch six innings in six straight outings, but Gill has reached that checkpoint in seven of his past 10.
Juan Soto, Anthony Volpe and Aaron Judge are all batting .276 or better against left-handed pitching, giving the Yankees a good chance to get out to an early lead in Queens.
play: Yankees’ first five innings (-120, FanDuel)
