WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — New York Yankees pitcher Marcus Stroman has suffered a setback in his attempt to return from a left knee injury that has kept him out of action for the past month.
Manager Aaron Boone said on Sunday that Stroman still felt “discomfort” in his knee after throwing a live batting practice session in Tampa, Florida, on Friday. He will be re-evaluated before the team determines the next steps in his rehabilitation process.
He’s had a lot of treatments and things like that. He just can’t get over that last hurdle to really allow him to get to the next level on the mound. We’ll try to keep trying to figure it out and make sure that goes away.
Aaron Boone
Stroman hasn’t pitched since allowing five runs in two-thirds of an inning against the San Francisco Giants on April 11. He was placed on the 15-day injured list the next day, which Boone hoped would be a short-term absence.
However, there is no timetable for his return, and Boone said the injury likely impacted the way Stroman pitched before going on the injured list. He was 0-1 with an 11.57 ERA in three starts.
Certainly, in that last at-bat, I think he really wasn’t able to get that front side down the way he needed to. I’m talking about how these guys are like race cars, and one little thing off can affect that last level of command or that last level of extra stuff you need. So we’ll keep trying to get him where we need to.
Aaron Boone
Stroman underwent surgery on March 19, 2015, to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. He returned to the Major League mound on September 12 of that year.
Stroman, 34, is in the second season of a two-year contract guaranteeing $37 million. The right-handed pitcher’s deal includes a conditional player option of $16 million for 2026 that could be exercised if he pitches at least 140 innings this year.
Last season, Stroman went 10-9 with a 4.31 ERA in 30 games (29 starts) while pitching 154 2/3 innings, his most since 2021 with the Mets. Stroman struggled in the second half and didn’t pitch in the postseason, when the Yankees made their first World Series appearance since 2009.
In other injury news, DJ LeMahieu played for a second straight day on a rehab assignment at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Sunday and could join the team in Seattle this week to make his season debut. LeMahieu recently received a cortisone shot last week in his right hip, an injury stemming from last year.
