It looks like the Yankees are about to receive a huge boost to their starting rotation.

Youngster Luis Gil was terrific across 4.1 innings of work as he made his likely final rehab appearance with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday night.

Gil needed 19 pitches to get through the opening frame against the Nashville Sounds, but he picked off a baserunner and added his first punchout with a nasty slider in the dirt.

He hit a man in the top of the second but quickly settled back into a groove, striking out the next four batters he faced before issuing a two-out walk in the third, which was also quickly erased.

The righty continued cruising from there, as he picked up a pair of three-pitch strikeouts in the fourth to help him work around a one-out single lined right back up the middle.

Nashville was finally able to strike against Gil in the fifth, though, as catcher Jorge Alfaro took an 0-2 slider on the outside corner the other way for a leadoff solo homer.

He retired the next batter on one pitch, but was pulled after an error put another man on -- right-hander Zach Messinger entered and was able to escape without any further damage on his line.

Gil's book closed with one run allowed on three hits and a walk while striking out seven over 4.1 innings.

After a shaky first outing in Triple-A, this was certainly the effort the Yanks were hoping for.

Aaron Boone said Tuesday that if everything comes back okay afterwards, the 27-year-old is lined up to make his highly anticipated season debut on Sunday afternoon against the Miami Marlins.

Gil, of course, has been sidelined since spring training with a right lat strain.

The last time he was on the big-league mound, he was finishing off a Rookie of the Year campaign in which he pitched to a 3.50 ERA and 1.19 WHIP with 171 strikeouts over 29 outings.

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