Fansided

Yankees rotation suffers another injury

By Rucker Haringey

NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 08: Masahiro Tanaka #19 of the New York Yankees scores past the tag of catcher Devin Mesoraco #29 of the New York Mets on a sacrifice fly by Aaron Judge #99 during the sixth inning of a game at Citi Field on June 8, 2018 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 08: Masahiro Tanaka #19 of the New York Yankees scores past the tag of catcher Devin Mesoraco #29 of the New York Mets on a sacrifice fly by Aaron Judge #99 during the sixth inning of a game at Citi Field on June 8, 2018 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The New York Yankees hitters are crushing the baseball, but their pitching rotation continues to suffer due to injuries. This time, it’s Masahiro Tanaka.

Masahiro Tanaka didn’t have much trouble pitching against the New York Mets tonight, but he did struggle running the bases. In fact, that Yankees pitcher was force to leave the game due to tightness in both hamstrings after scoring the team’s first run of the Subway Series.

There’s no firm indication as to how much time Tanaka will miss. He’s due to be re-evaluated tomorrow by Yankees medical officials. What is certain is that Aaron Boone can’t afford to lose his Japanese pitcher for too long.

The team already lost starter Jordan Montgomery this week to Tommy John surgery. That injury put Brian Cashman under immediate pressure to acquire some pitching help. Domingo German has done a decent job filling in for Montgomery, but he may be better suited for a bullpen role at this point in his young career.

Tanaka hasn’t been dominant this season, but he did enter the contest against the Mets with a 7-2 record. His 4.79 ERA doesn’t quite live up to his win/loss record. Even so, he’s done a good job of eating up innings and giving his team a chance to win.

If he is forced to miss any appreciable number of starts, it’s going to require a significant roster move by Cashman and company. The most logical thing to do would be to bring up a prospect from the minors. Neither Justus Sheffield or Chance Adams is dominating hitters at the AAA level but they have the stuff to be effective at the major league level. One of them would likely get a chance or two to stake their claim to a spot in the Yankees’ rotation if Tanaka can’t go.

Next: 5 starting pitchers the Yankees can target via trade

Ultimately, the mere thought of Tanaka missing a turn or two in the rotation highlights just how delicate the Yankees’ rotation is at the moment. The loss of Montgomery due to injury has removed all margin for error for the starting staff. Yankees officials will face a nervous wait until the final evaluation of Masahiro Tanaka’s injury rolls in.

Home/New York Yankees