LOS ANGELES -- Hours before the Yankees and Dodgers took the field for the second game of their World Series rematch, Fernando Cruz and Marcus Stroman were both on the mound at Dodger Stadium, taking significant steps in their respective returns to big league action.
Cruz said he felt “amazing” after tossing 18 pitches in live batting practice, which is expected to be the right-hander’s final checkpoint before a likely activation during the Bombers’ upcoming home series against the Guardians.
“I threw all my pitches for strikes, and the velocity was there,” Cruz said. “I wasn’t even trying to throw hard and the ball was coming out really good. I feel really healthy.”
The 35-year-old Cruz faced J.C. Escarra and Pablo Reyes in the session. Cruz has been on the injured list since May 22 (retroactive to May 19) with right shoulder inflammation, which he said flared up during a May 17 Subway Series outing against the Mets.
Prior to the injury, Cruz had been off to a dominant start in his first season as a Yankee, following his acquisition in a December trade with the Reds. In 21 appearances, Cruz logged a 2.66 ERA, registering 35 strikeouts against 15 hits and eight walks in 23 2/3 innings.
“I think [the injured list stint] was worth it,” Cruz said. “The pain I was going through needed to be fixed. This time will make me even better, I think.”
It has been more than a month since Stroman participated in game action, experiencing left knee inflammation following a rainy April 11 start against the Giants at Yankee Stadium.
Stroman worked two innings, tossing 33 pitches. Manager Aaron Boone said he thought Stroman “looked really sharp.”
There is no set timeline for Stroman’s return to the big league rotation; considering the time of his layoff, pitching coach Matt Blake said it is likely Stroman would need to go through a full Spring Training-type build-up.
“We’re building the pitch count up a little bit, making sure the knee is responding well,” Blake said.
Because of spring injuries to Gerrit Cole, Luis Gil and Clarke Schmidt, the 34-year-old Stroman opened the season as the Yankees’ No. 3 starter.
He began his second year with the club posting an 11.57 ERA across three starts, having gone 10-9 with a 4.31 ERA in 30 games (29 starts) in 2024.
Stroman’s two-year, $37 million deal includes a vesting option for the 2026 season which kicks in if he reaches 140 innings; the April injury and continuing layoff now makes that unlikely.
“We’ve got five starters currently, so you’re starting to talk about roster decisions,” Blake said. “You want to give yourself as much information as possible to get to that point and make sure he’s ready to go. Then we’ll have a better idea of where it all fits together.”