Over the next several weeks, you will be seeing player previews for all players on the New York Yankees. They will be released five or six days a week leading up into about mid-March.
The first player that we will be previewing is the longest tenured starting pitcher, Masahiro Tanaka.
In 2019, Tanaka was an all-star for the second time in his career. He was 11-9 with a 4.45 ERA but did fade a little bit later in the season. The righty from Itami, Japan struck out 149 batters in 182 innings with a 1.24 WHIP. He was 2-1 this past postseason and has gained a reputation for postseason success.
Tanaka is currently 31 years old and expected to be a free agent following the 2021 season.
2020 Expectations:
Masahiro Tanaka will be somewhere in the middle of the Yankees rotation. Gerrit Cole will be the obvious ace, and JA Happ will be the fifth starter. It’s a toss-up between Tanaka, Severino, and Paxton for the second, third, and fourth starter roles. All three could succeed in all three spots.
Tanaka will be going into his seventh major league season, which is hard to believe. It seems like he made his debut just a few years ago.
He will look to best his 2014 rookie season where he 13-5 with a 2.77 ERA. Tanaka has made it very clear that he is a perfectionist and has been working hard all winter.
It would be great if he could have a season like his rookie season, but the Yankees don’t need him to do that. If he can have an ERA under 3.50 and give the Yankees consistent quality starts, then that’s all the team needs. He could be a guy that the Yankees rely on to keep the bullpen rested, as he often keeps a low pitch count.