Injuries to both James Paxton and Luis Severino have complicated the New York Yankees’ starting pitching unit, as they will now have to fill two positions if the pair miss significant time.
Recent reports have indicated that Paxton could return as soon as May, despite a three-month recovery timetable that landed him in Judge. Yankees manager Aaron Boone stated that Paxton would begin throwing in the next few days, as his lower back has recovered nicely after having surgery to remove a cyst.
The New York Yankees plug in a youngster:
One of the younger bullpen arms currently projected to feature for the Bombers is Jonathan Loaisiga, who threw 14 pitches on Sunday.
“There is a chance for a spot in the rotation. If that happens, I have to do my job on the field,” said Loaisiga. The young pitcher missed time in 2014-15 while playing for the San Francisco Giants. He was claimed by the Yankees in 2016 but was limited to just one game that season. At 25 years old, he’s in an excellent place to reach his potential and leave a mark on the 2020 campaign.
What is Loaisiga doing to develop?
Loaisiga has already built his style around different fast-balls that produce high miss-rates. Still, he’s attempting to add more off-speed pitches to his arsenal — including a changeup and curveball, according to the New York Post.
“Something we talked about, adding another weapon,’’ said Loaisiga.
He managed to secure a strikeout on a changeup, giving him a little more confidence in his newly developed pitch.
“He threw some really good changeups,’’ manager Aaron Boone said. “The strikeout on the changeup was a really good pitch. From the side, for a second, I thought it might have been a breaking ball [because] it had so much depth on it.’’
If Loaisiga can add the two off-speed pitches to his arsenal, it will make him a more complete pitcher. It’s possible he could be pulled up into a starting role with Severino and Paxton set to miss time. Hopefully, he can hold onto this unique opportunity.