Ellis on, Stroman left off Yankees' ALDS roster

NEW YORK -- The Yankees announced their 26-man roster for the American League Division Series against the Royals on Saturday.

As expected, Anthony Rizzo and DJ LeMahieu were not listed on the roster as they recover from injuries. Right-hander Marcus Stroman was left off as the Yankees will go with an 11-man pitching staff for the ALDS.

“It was a hard decision,” manager Aaron Boone said. “In this series, potentially needing only three starters and having four on, you just felt like the role for this series was better to go with another reliever.”

Right-handed reliever Jake Cousins, who was activated following a stint on the injured list, said that he considers the Bombers’ bullpen “a strong unit.”

“We've known each other, we all have each other's backs,” Cousins said. “If one guy goes in there and doesn't get the job done, the next guy will. We all believe that. We've got a lot of swing-and-miss stuff. We've got soft contact. We can match up well with left and right.

“I think we've been trusting each other all year, and I think that's just what we're going to continue doing.”

Boone said that it was a “close call” to select left-hander Tim Mayza over right-handers Clayton Beeter and Mark Leiter Jr.

“Mayza has been a lefty killer over his career,” Boone said. “I just feel like Tim has thrown the ball well for us here over the last couple of months to put himself in the mix.”

The 11-man pitching staff allows them to carry outfielder Duke Ellis, who appeared in three September games with the Bombers and will be utilized in a pinch-running role.

“His speed allows you to be a little more aggressive with that spot, knowing you’ve got an extra man on the bench to plug in wherever you need it,” Boone said.

Here's the Yankees' ALDS roster:

PITCHERS (11)
Gerrit Cole
Jake Cousins
Luis Gil
Ian Hamilton
Tim Hill
Clay Holmes
Tommy Kahnle
Tim Mayza
Carlos Rodón
Clarke Schmidt
Luke Weaver

CATCHERS (2)
Jose Trevino
Austin Wells

INFIELDERS (3)
Jon Berti
Gleyber Torres
Anthony Volpe

OUTFIELDERS (7)
Jasson Domínguez
Duke Ellis
Trent Grisham
Aaron Judge
Juan Soto
Giancarlo Stanton
Alex Verdugo

UTILITY (3)
Oswaldo Cabrera
Jazz Chisholm Jr.
Ben Rice