During his time with the New York Mets in 2020, pitcher Marcus Stroman elected to wear number 0 on account of his prefered number of seven belonging to icon Jose Reyes. Now, news has broken that the right-hander has elected to keep the number with his new team.
After going 10-9 with a 3.95 ERA as a member of the Chicago Cubs last year, Stroman opted out of his contract. In January, the 32-year-old announced that he would be inking a two-year deal worth $37 million with the Yankees.
"Marcus Stroman confirms that he will wear #0" - Talkin' Yanks
Via a somewhat cryptic Instagram story posted on Jan. 17, Stroman revealed that he will be retaining the number 0 as a member of the New York Yankees. In response to the news, fans in the Bronx seemed rather supportive.
Last season, 0 was worn by pitcher Domingo German. Despite tossing the 24th perfect game in history against the Oakland Athletics last June, German became embroiled in a spousal abuse scandal that ultimately led to the team placing him on waivers after the end of the season.
A native of Long Island, the Yankees will represent the fourth team of Marcus Stroman's career. A two-time All-Star, Stroman's signing was seen as a sort of consolation for the Yankees after the team missed out on agreeing to terms with Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Despite extensive rumors that a deal between the Yankees and Yamamoto would come to fruition, the 25-year old decided to ink a deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers in late December.
Known for his outspoken persona on Twitter, Stroman is a man of many talents. In addition to pitching, the 5-foot-7 starter is also a musician, author and owns a line of luxury shoes.
Marcus Stroman's energy will be matched in the Bronx
Known around the league for his swagger, Marcus Stroman could not have asked for a bigger limelight than a chance to play for the Yankees. The team is fresh off a season in which they narrowly avoided their first last-place divisional finish since 1990, and fans are growing increasingly uneasy.
Although he may not be an antidote to all the problems faced by the team, Stroman is a competitor. Although zero might not be his ERA in 2024, it is the number that Yankees fans will get used to associating with the cocky, but highly-skilled starter.