“If the 2020 season was to start tomorrow, I would feel considerably more confident than I did a year ago at this time,’’ Steinbrenner said. “We will have both Severino and Montgomery back. We now know that [Domingo] German can pitch effectively at this level. And we know [James] Paxton can be the guy that we were hoping for when we made that trade. We have [Masahiro] Tanaka, [J.A.] Happ, [Jonathan] Loaisiga, and perhaps [Deivi] Garcia at some point. A very good rotation.’’
This screams, “road-work ahead!” If you’ve ever been driving on the highway and been forced to slow down because Hal Steinbrenner is laying down new concrete and not signing starting pitchers to bolster the rotation, raise your hand. However, it’s fair to consider his previous signings of Masahiro Tanaka and trading for James Paxton, who emerged as an ace during the latter portion of the 2019 season.
Hal isn’t wrong. The team will gain back several strong arms in Luis Severino and Jordan Montgomery, two pitchers who, at the top of their game, can be extremely effective. Severino is capable of being a No. 1 option, and Paxton has established himself as a No. 2. Monty has two sub-4.00 ERAs under his belt in three years, and they have youngsters like Deivi Garcia/Michael King preparing to make the jump.
The Yankees need to do what’s best for the team:
Despite the re-tooling of the starting rotation with current Yankees players, adding a dominant arm like Gerrit Cole would immediately make the unit one of the best in the league. It would also give manager Aaron Boone the ability to develop his youngsters in a bullpen role, allowing them to refine their skills and work inning-by-inning slowly.