Yankees fans chime in with their take on Marcus Stroman's eccentric jersey number for Bronx Bombers
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.