Is It Too Early to Worry About the Yankees Starting Rotation?
It’s no secret that the New York Yankees’ starting pitching rotation has gone through massive losses this season. Losing Gerrit Cole to season-ending Tommy John surgery in Spring Training was only the first blow, and losing Clarke Schmidt for at least the next year was the latest blow. Last weekend against the Chicago Cubs, Max Fried sustained a blister on his right hand, causing him to have a less-than-impressive outing. Most recently, the newest addition to the rotation, Cam Schlittler, had an MRI after experiencing bicep tightness. While Schlittler should be able to make his start against the Toronto Blue Jays this upcoming week, he missed the chance to start the first game back from the All-Star Break.
In last night’s game against the Atlanta Braves, the Yankees were forced to have a bullpen game with reliever Ian Hamilton making the start. Without the dangerous, flame-throwing bullpen that they once had, the Yankees turned to pitchers among the likes of Rico Garcia and JT Brubaker. In total, Hamilton, Garcia, and Scott Effross gave up seven runs and nine hits. While the team was able to keep their high-leverage players out of the game last night, the bullpen still took a hit. Especially since Will Warren and Marcus Stroman usually don’t pitch too far into games, it will be interesting to see how Aaron Boone manages the bullpen in the coming days.
While fans can expect to see Luis Gil rejoin the rotation sometime in August, there’s certainly a question of whether the rotation can survive until then. The fact that the first three starts after the All-Star Break were handled by a bullpen day, Warren, and Stroman, is definitely not impressive for a team as high-caliber as the Yankees are. The rotation is currently showing a lack of depth, without arms to depend on in Triple-A, and a lack of stability, since Fried and Schlittler are showing signs of wear. Unless the team chooses to make a move for one of the dependable starting pitchers on the market, it will be hard to imagine this group making a long run in October against the competition in the American League.
