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New York Yankees: Masahiro Tanaka cannot save this staff

By Jake Misener

Jun 3, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka (19) adjusts his hat during the third inning of a game against the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 3, 2015; Seattle, WA, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Masahiro Tanaka (19) adjusts his hat during the third inning of a game against the Seattle Mariners at Safeco Field. Mandatory Credit: Jennifer Buchanan-USA TODAY Sports /
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Despite running off a five-game winning streak, the New York Yankees’ starting rotation cannot – and will not – be saved by right-hander Masahiro Tanaka.

When Masahiro Tanaka succumbed to an arm injury earlier this season, the New York Yankees’ shot at returning to the postseason for the first time since 2012 seemingly evaporated into thin air.

The work he turned in during the month of April prior to heading to the disabled list wasn’t exactly “ace-like,” as he failed to pitch past the fifth inning twice in his four starts, completing seven innings just one time.

Still, his numbers were respectable and he showed major signs of improvement, combining to allow one earned run in his last two starts of April, spanning 13 1/3 innings of work.

As he worked his way back from the injury, many wondered what to expect from Tanaka, who is the clear-cut ace of a staff that’s stuck lugging around the dead weight that is C.C. Sabathia.

In his return to the mound on June 3, the righty gave at least an initial answer to those fans, allowing just one run on three hits across seven innings in a 3-1 win over the Seattle Mariners.

But despite his dominant outing last week, this team cannot afford to stand pat on the rotation. As a staff, the Yankees have just 22 quality starts in 56 games this season, the fourth-worst mark in all of Major League Baseball, according to Sporting Charts.

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    • New York starters are 22-20 this season, carrying a 4.10 ERA into action Sunday. Thankfully, the offense has picked up at least some of the slack (see New York’s +25 run differential), lending a helping hand to a disappointing rotation that has failed to keep runs off the board so far.

    I included the Yankees on my recent list of five teams that needed to shore up their starting rotation last week, and with good reason. Despite the shortcomings of this staff, the Bronx Bombers still cling to a half-game lead in an under-performing American League East.

    While a healthy Tanaka who is on his game adds a big weapon alongside breakout righty Michael Pineda, who boasts a 7-2 record this season.

    Both Tanaka and Pineda have injuries to keep in mind and, thus, will likely see their respective workloads limited. New York is skipping the latter’s next start in an attempt to keep from overworking his right arm, which has already been surgically repaired.

    Even with a healthy Pineda and Tanaka, this staff lacks what it takes to make a deep postseason run.

    Assuming both pitchers’ injuries do not resurface (and we have no reason to expect they will), that leaves three spots in the New York rotation that are currently held by the likes of the aforementioned Sabathia, Nathan Eovaldi and Adam Warren.

    That trio has combined to go 13-12 this season in 33 outings, posting a cumulative ERA of 4.42.

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    Eovaldi, who was acquired from the Miami Marlins this winter, and Sabathia are both averaging over 11 hits allowed per nine, while Warren has been solid, but far from an impact starter.

    Granted, he wasn’t ever expected to be that kind of starter for New York, but the clear regression of Sabathia leaves a big hole in the Yanks’ rotation – one that no amount of dominance from Masahiro Tanaka and Michael Pineda can fill.

    While it’s certainly great to have seen Tanaka take that first step back to becoming the pitcher we saw win 13 games and earn an All-Star selection in his first big league season, one thing is abundantly clear:

    Brian Cashman needs to make an impact move to give Tanaka the help he needs to lead the Yankees back to October.

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