In Stroman, the Yanks are getting more than just an arm

This story was excerpted from the Yankees Beat newsletter. To read the full newsletter, click here. And subscribe to get it regularly in your inbox.

NEW YORK -- The Yankees improved their rotation last week by agreeing to contract terms with Marcus Stroman for what will be the right-hander’s second tenure in New York. Stroman played half of the 2019 season and all of '21 with the Mets, going 14-15 with a 3.21 ERA in 44 games over that span.

In the Bronx, Stroman joins a rotation that includes American League Cy Young Award winner Gerrit Cole, left-handers Carlos Rodón and Nestor Cortes and right-hander Clarke Schmidt. Of the five, Cole was the only one to pitch more than 160 innings last season.

The Yankees are hoping that 2024 will be a sweet homecoming for Stroman, who is from Medford, N.Y., which is about 50 miles east of the Bronx.

Stroman grew up a Yankees fan. In 2019, he said he loved pitching at Yankee Stadium, despite his 6.06 ERA in 11 games at the ballpark.

"I'm from New York and I'm a New York boy. That kind of says everything for itself,” Stroman said then. "I love pitching [at Yankee Stadium]. New York is like the Mecca of the world. I love excitement, the bright lights, competition, I love pressure. I always loved pitching here. I haven't necessarily pitched well, [but] I always enjoyed it.

"Yankee lineups are brutal. They are kind of hard to navigate, [but] I love the spotlight. The bigger the moment, that's what I kind of wanted it to be."

Stroman has a five-pitch mix which includes a sinker (his No. 1 pitch), curveball, cutter, slider and four-seam fastball, which often clocks in the low 90s. Those pitches helped him become an All-Star in 2023 -- his second career selection.

Stroman went 9-6 with a 2.96 ERA before the All-Star break for the Cubs, but rib cage and hip injuries slowed him down in the second half. He appeared in only eight games -- two of them out of the bullpen -- and allowed 27 runs (23 earned) in 24 innings.

“His best qualities are command and pitchability,” said a National League scout. “He really knows how to pitch, and he competes. When you look at the Yankees, in terms of needs and what is available, Stroman is a very good signing. There is not a lot out there. They don’t have enough players to get a Dylan Cease, which would have been good, or a Corbin Burnes [in a trade].”

The Yankees are getting more than just an arm. Stroman has that New York edge about him, and he is not afraid to say what is on his mind, according to a source in the Cubs' organization.

“He is a person who cares about the game. He cares about his body and how he prepares himself,” the source said. “He doesn’t get caught up in any [other stuff]. He doesn’t care what anyone else thinks. As far as baseball goes, he is one of the best pitchers in the game. He is going to be fine. He is a player. He has tough skin. He has pitched in New York before. He is not going to be bothered one bit.

“He is going to go pitch and try to get people out. He is going to have swag. He is going to have flair. Some people are not going to like it. Some people are going to love it. When he is pitching well, everybody is going to love him. When he is pitching badly, no one is going to like him.”