With the MLB shutting down operations for the foreseeable future, there’s no baseball in sight, yet the New York Yankees continue to practice and prepare for Opening Day.
The league believes that there will, in fact, be a season in 2020, but whether or not it includes more than 100 games is up for debate. The Yankees might have to endure an abridged season, which might actually benefit them due to their bad luck in the injury department.
One New York Yankees player could miss most of if not all of 2020:
Domingo German, who was suspended for 63 games in 2020 on a domestic abuse charge, could miss the entire season if things continue to progress the way they are. German will still have to serve the whole length of his suspension, according to SNY’s Andy Martino. However, if the entire year is canceled, which seems like a possibility with the USA now claiming to be the most infected country in the world with Covid-19, German’s suspension wouldn’t carry over into 2021.
The original suspension, which served him 81 games, carried over into 2020 with 63 left over. While Domingo deserves every bit of the suspension, the Yankees will lose one of their best pitchers for quite some time.
In 2019, he posted impressive numbers, improving significantly from his 2018 performance. Logging a 4.03 ERA with 153 strikeouts, he led the team with 18 wins and four losses. However, he was punished by the deep-ball, giving up 30 homers, double his 2018 total in 22 fewer innings.
The Yankees made moves to supplement his loss, though, signing Gerrit Cole to a massive $324 million deal over nine-years and retaining JA Happ amid trade speculations. They will also gain back Jordan Montgomery, who posted two consecutive seasons of sub-4.00 ERA baseball before succumbing to Tommy Johns surgery.
Losing German won’t be as significant as some think, but he will be a great addition to the rotation once he’s eligible for return. However, that doesn’t take away from his actions and hopefully, he has learned a valuable lesson in the process.