While our own Alex Wilson explained here that the New York Yankees haven’t had any luck in Luis Severino’s long-term deal since he has been injured most of the time after inking the contract, reports from his progress so far after undergoing Tommy John surgery are positive. He will miss the whole season (if there is any) and return next year with an eye on returning to the level that made him one of the best starters in the American League until not so long ago.
Actually, the Yankees’ starter is among the players that chose to stay at George M. Steinbrenner Field for workouts in the middle of the coronavirus pandemic. He said that, so far, everything is going as planned following the TJ surgery performed on him in February.
“Of course it’s frustrating, but this year has been a frustrating year for everybody. So right now, I’m just focused on trying to be healthy for next year,†Severino told the New York Post (seen here at MLB.com) via email. “With everything that’s been going on, there hasn’t been any baseball. But right now, there are more things to worry about than playing baseball, you know, like the health of everyone and staying safe. I’m just focused on the day to day.â€
The Yankees seem to think that Severino’s partially torn ulnar collateral ligament is originally from last season start against the Astros in the American League Championship Series, specifically, in Game Three.
The Yankees will miss him this year
Since the usual recovery time frame from Tommy John surgery is between 12 to 18 months, Severino could miss part of the 2021 season, too.
“I’ve been down in Tampa since the day after I had my surgery,†Severino said. “I do arm bike, dumbbell exercises, and I just follow the routine that [trainers] Timmy [Lentych] and Alfonso [Malaguti] plan out for me. I spend an hour and half with them in the trainer’s room before I move into the gym, every day, five days a week.
“Things have been progressing well. I’ve been making steady progress — lifting, doing exercises. Since three months ago — I think when I first had my surgery — I feel way better. I’m doing everything I need to do right now so that I can start throwing this summer.’’
Other rehabbing players in the New York Yankees’ roster have joined Sevy in Tampa, such as Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, while Miguel Andújar, Mike Ford, J.A. Happ, DJ LeMahieu, Gleyber Torres and Tyler Wade have been spotted at the facility.
For now, he knows that he won’t be pitching in games for a while, but he’s doing everything in his power to regain health, slowly but surely.
“Of course, it’s disappointing, but I want to look long term,†Severino said. “I want to be healthy for a long time. So I want to use this year — and last year — to get better, listen to my body. Of course, I was mad at that time [of the injuries], but right now I just want to worry about getting healthy again and having a long career.â€