The Future Look of the New York Yankees’ Rotation
As the second half of the season is underway, it’s apparent that the Yankees need a few pitchers to solidify their rotation. It’s becoming evident that both J.A. Happ and James Paxton simply aren’t producing the way they should be. Masahiro Tanaka has also gone through a rough patch since the pitching in the all-star game earlier this month, giving up a whopping twelve runs on July 25th at Fenway.
With the trade deadline quickly approaching, it’s obvious that adding a pitcher is at the top of their priority list but there’s also another option if the pitching continues the downhill slide: Deivi Garcia.Â
Diehard Yankee fans who follow the progression of top minor league prospects may have recognized his name before the season started but many first discovered him when he showcased his abilities in the MLB Futures Game in Cleveland. Garcia had a quick 1-2-3 inning, using his 96 mph fastball to punch out Atlanta Braves top prospect Christian Pache.Â
Even with the struggles the Yanks have had with pitching, there’s no reason to panic. They have lots of options, especially with Luis Severino returning to the staff in the near future. Calling up Garcia could be the Yankees missing piece to the pitching puzzle. If the Yankees get a starter via a trade and call up Garcia, a lot still needs to happen for the Yanks to have a World Series caliber rotation.Â
Fans have different opinions as to who’s at fault for the rotation’s lack of consistency but we can all agree on this; baseball is a very difficult game and sometimes the ball does not bounce the way we want it to. None of the pitchers (except D. German) have pitched to their full potential and that’s the frustrating part for many of us.
What needs reiterated time and time again throughout the season is that baseball is a contagious game. Even if Deivi Garcia is promoted to the big league club, it will not solve all of the Yankees’ problems. There will still be four pitchers in the rotation that need to produce and it only takes one bounce-back start to get that ball rolling.
The uncertainty of the staff’s ability is frustrating but if this same rotation has quality outings in the playoffs, none of us will even remember the struggles in late July.