Ryan

Weathers

That means Luis Gil is the odd man out, at least for now. It’s unclear if he’ll remain back at the team’s spring training facility to keep working and stay stretched out as a starter or if he’ll head north with the team and operate in a long relief role out of the bullpen for the time being. Max Fried, Cam Schlittler, Will Warren and Ryan Weathers will start the club’s first four games.

Weathers struck out five, but he gave up two homers and six other hits. His spring ERA is all of the way up to 11.68 through four outings. Still, his rotation spot probably won’t be on the line until Carlos Rodón returns and then Gerrit Cole beyond that.

Two poor outings in a row have left Weathers with an 8.68 ERA this spring. Still, he did have a 37% CSW today, and he allowed two fewer hard-hit balls than hits. His velocity remains great — he hit 100.0 on the gun today — but, of course, if it was all about stuff, the Marlins wouldn’t have given him up for a package headed by the Yankees’ 15th-best prospect.

Weathers was perfect in the first before giving up three singles and two walks while retiring just one batter in the second. Chris Veach took over then and stranded both inherited runners. Weathers came back out for the third and struggled after a leadoff error, giving up four more hits before being pulled with two outs. In all, Weathers allowed seven hard-hit balls and generated only four whiffs on 26 swings. There’s no doubting his stuff, but we’ll have to wait and see when it comes to consistency and durability with him.

There are debuts, and then there are statements. Weathers’ first start in Pinstripes felt like the latter. The 26-year-old southpaw averaged a sizzling 98.5 mph on his four-seam fastball and topped out at a career-high 99.8 mph, a noticeable jump that immediately turns heads. Acquired from the Marlins last month, he offers short-term fantasy intrigue as he’s slated to open the year in New York’s rotation while Gerrit Cole (elbow) and Carlos Rodón (elbow) are sidelined. Injuries have limited him to just 24 starts over the past two seasons, so durability remains the looming variable. The velocity spike changes the calculus, re-affirming that Weathers is the type of late-round arm that can dramatically impact a fantasy roster if his health cooperates.

The trade is now official. Weathers has shown flashes of big-time potential, recording a strong 3.74 ERA — 4.26 FIP — 1.21 WHIP and 117/36 K/BB ratio across 125 innings for the Marlins over the last two seasons. The 26-year-old southpaw has been limited to just 24 starts during that span due to injuries, including forearm and lat issues that cost him nearly five months this past season. He’s an interesting gamble for the Yankees — and a speculative late-round dice roll in fantasy leagues — as a high-upside rotation arm with Gerrit Cole coming off Tommy John surgery and Carlos Rodón working his way back from an offseason elbow procedure. He projects as a high-velocity impact reliever if they decide to move him to the bullpen at some point in the future. Meanwhile, his departure from Miami removes another obstacle from the path of top pitching prospects Thomas White and Robby Snelling.

Craig Mish of the Miami Herald adds that outfielders Dillon Lewis and Brendan Jones and infielders Dylan Jasso and Juan Matheus are heading to the Marlins in the deal. Weathers has shown flashes of big-time potential, recording a strong 3.74 ERA — 4.26 FIP — 1.21 WHIP and 117/36 K/BB ratio across 125 innings for the Marlins over the last two seasons. The 26-year-old southpaw has been limited to just 24 starts during that span due to injuries, including forearm and lat issues that cost him nearly five months this past season. He’s an interesting gamble for the Yankees as a high-upside back-end rotation arm with Gerrit Cole coming back from Tommy John surgery and Carlos Rodón working his way back from elbow surgery. Meanwhile, the Marlins continue clearing the flotsam and jetsam from their rotation mix with top pitching prospects Thomas White and Robby Snelling on the precipice of the big leagues.

Weathers showed impressive stuff last year, but he was limited to eight starts by forearm and lat injuries, finishing with a 3.99 ERA. He should be pretty much assured a spot in Miami’s rotation, and there’s the chance of some mixed-league value, though the questions about his health are concerning.

There was plenty of good and bad from Weathers in this one. Starting with the bad, he gave up three homers – one of them traveling 441 feet off the bat of Bryson Stott – and seven hard hit balls on only 13 total balls in play. He didn’t make many bad pitches though, sometimes you just have to tip your hat to the hitters. With that, Weathers forced 16 swings-and-misses and located his sweeper especially well on the back-foot of this right-handed heavy Phillies lineup. It’s been great to see him get back on the mound to end the season and a normal offseason should help him carry some momentum into 2026.

Weathers was outstanding against the Nationals in his return to the mound last week against the Nationals, but this was far from excellent. He surrendered eight hits, walked two and struck out only a pair while facing the lowly Rockies; albeit in Colorado. The 25-year-old will hope to be more like the hurler who held Washington scoreless last Thursday when he faces the Phillies on Tuesday.