If there’s one thing we’ve learned throughout the injury bug decimating the New York Yankees early on this season, it’s that youth can be the answer. Ace pitcher Luis Severino is among the victims of the most recent plague, but unexpected pitcher Domingo German has done a fantastic job filling in while Severino rehabs.
It’s now expected that Luis will be out for several additional weeks than previously foreseen after re-aggravating his rotator cuff. He’s now on the 60-day injured list and will likely return in June/July.
In the meantime, German has been outstanding, putting up a 2.56 ERA with a 5-1 record. The knock on the 26-year-old has been his lack of consistency on the mound, but he’s finally finding his rhythm and utilizing his strikeout pitches more efficiently.
Domingo Germán, Wicked 81mph Breaking Ball (w/ tracker). ? pic.twitter.com/eEvS1qI6Lk
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 14, 2019
Take a look at this sequence of pitches as he puts Albert Pujols down with ease:
https://twitter.com/sung_minkim/status/1120908511666302977?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1120908511666302977&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fblogs.fangraphs.com%2Fdomingo-german-is-finding-consistency%2F
In 2019, German was not living up to his potential like he is this year, so far. He posted a 5.57 ERA and a 4.39 FIP in 85.2 IP (21 games and 14 starts). A fantastic 27.2% strikeout rate highlighted his pitching but his elevated fly-ball rate resulted in a lot of home runs at Yankees Stadium.
Luckily, he’s been able to control his accuracy and force batters to chase curveballs falling outside of the strike zone. The movement on his breaking ball has been jaw-dropping.
Clearly, he has fixed some glaring mistake that has allowed him to find his best self. It seems as if his torso/upper body is more stable when pitching, improving his accuracy when compared to 2019. If you’re looking for more technical information, check out this article – Fangraphs.
With Severino out, J.A. Happ struggling with his efficiency, and CC Sabathia fighting father time, Domingo picked the perfect time to take his game to the next level. The Yankees need him to continue dominating and playing lights-out baseball. Continuing forward with his current momentum should allow the Bombers to squeeze out more wins as they wait for their every-day starter to return and provide more run-support.