Which returning Yankees player will matter most? Luis Gil? Clarke Schmidt? Someone else?

 

The cavalry is coming — and, no, it’s not Jasson Domínguez. At least not yet.

Several injured New York Yankees are making their way back from the sideline. On Thursday, the club reinstated rookie righty Luis Gil from the injured list and planned for him to start Friday against the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. To make room for Gil, it demoted righty reliever Scott Effross.

Gil figures to have a potentially huge impact on the Yankees in September as they chase an American League East title. The 25-year-old went 12-6 with a 3.39 ERA in 24 starts before being put on ice with lower-back tightness. He’s at least in the mix for AL Rookie of the Year, along with teammate Austin Wells.

Here’s our ranking of the Yankees coming off the injured list soon based on who will matter most:

Luis Gil

Gil’s return gives the Yankees a chance to get him on track before the playoffs, where he could be the Yankees’ No. 2 or No. 3 starter. His lights-out stuff may only be matched by ace Gerrit Cole. Of course, there may be some temptation by the Yankees — and especially within the fan base — to try out Gil as the team’s new closer, in the wake of Clay Holmes’ recent struggles. The argument against that would be twofold, yet simple: For one, Gil might be the Yankees’ second-best starting pitcher, and the team needs good starting pitching to even get to situations where a closer would be needed. The other? Gil has thrown 124 2/3 innings — by far the most in his career. At this point, allowing him to start every fifth or sixth day might be the best path toward keeping him healthy. Imagine asking him to save back-to-back games in late September after he’s spent his whole career as a starting pitcher. It would be a lofty expectation.

Clarke Schmidt

The Yankees have slated Schmidt to start Saturday vs. the Cubs. Through his first 11 starts, he was one of the best pitchers in the game, posting a 2.52 ERA with 9.9 strikeouts per nine innings and a 1.137 WHIP. The Yankees would love that version of Schmidt to return and bump someone else (perhaps lefty Nestor Cortes) out of the starting rotation. But Schmidt might also be the better bullpen option than Gil. Like Gil, Schmidt has nasty strikeout stuff, and he actually has extensive reliever experience, having pitched out of the bullpen in three games in 2022 and 11 times total in the majors. And, as manager Aaron Boone likes to point out, Schmidt oozes the kind of confidence that could transition well to crunch-time innings.