Marcus Stroman will start his first MLB game since April 11 as the 34-year-old recovers from a left knee injury. The numbers he put up during his rehab assignment left much to be desired, but Aaron Boone is confident in Stroman’s abilities, as a New York Yankees loss and Tampa Bay Rays win would boost the Rays to first place in the AL East.
Boone Comments on Marcus Stroman’s Upcoming Start After Slow Start to the Season
On April 11, Stroman recorded just two outs, giving up five earned runs on four hits and three walks. It took 46 pitches to record those two outs, which increased his ERA from 7.27 to 11.57. As he picked up the loss in that contest, it would be the last appearance for Stroman until his upcoming start on June 29 against the A’s. And Boone seems to have something to tell him.
“He’s got to command it,” Boone commented. “That’s the biggest thing, is being where he wants on the plate and having a presence on both sides of the plate, can’t just live one side. What is kind of the shapes of his pitches? Is he crisp?”
Prior to today’s game, the Yankees returned RHP Marcus Stroman (#0) from his rehab assignment and reinstated him from the 15-day injured list.
— New York Yankees (@Yankees) June 29, 2025
After the Yankees’ official X handle confirmed his return, Stroman spoke about his current situation. He said, “I’m someone who definitely needs kind of the intensity to turn it on, so looking forward to kind of getting back out there.” As he touched on the injury, “It’s my ACL knee that I tore 10 years ago, so just figuring out how to deal with the soreness, the aching and then mechanically figuring out how to get away from kind of overdoing it into my knee. When I’m more efficient mechanically, my knee’s taking less stress.”
In his three starts this season before injury, he has a 0-1 record with the inflated 11.57 ERA. He’s given up 12 hits and 12 earned runs in nine and one-third innings, with seven strikeouts and walks each. He hasn’t had a start go longer than four and two-thirds innings, with that being his first start of the year against the Milwaukee Brewers.
Stroman had a 6.97 ERA during his three-game rehab stint and went 0-1. His numbers in Somerset aren’t the biggest indicator of how he’ll be back in the big leagues, but they’re something to consider. Seeing as he’ll return against the A’s, Boone is putting him in a great position to succeed against a team that is 34-51.
Stroman knows he must work on his command, no matter who he’s facing. While his knee might never be 100% again, he’s been able to identify how he can work around the pain and looks to get the Yankees back on track after they were shut out, 7-0.