Yankees: Good and bad news in tie against Detroit, the German show

New York Yankees, Domingo German
iJul 20, 2018; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Domingo German (65) pitches against the New York Mets during the first inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

After being completely annihilated by the Philadelphia Phillies on Thursday afternoon, the Yankees turned the tables a bit, putting forth a dominant bout of pitching against the Detroit Tigers.

Spring training is always filled with a few anomalies, and as the Yankees continue to decipher who will make the active roster for Opening Day in a few weeks, Friday’s contest gave them a bit more clarity on their starting pitching situation.

Domingo German got his first start of spring training, having missed all of 2020 due to an 81 game suspension after a domestic violence case. German has been a bit mysterious over the past few months regarding his intentions to play in the MLB, but his performance against Detroit proved that he can be a quality pitcher and one the Yankees will likely utilizing 2021 and beyond.

Good and bad news for the New York Yankees:

German pitched 2.0 innings in his first action in over a year, racking up four strikeouts and allowing just one hit.

In other words, he was dominant, as he competes for the fifth spot in the starting rotation behind Gerrit Cole, Corey Kluber, Jameson Taillon, and Jordan Montgomery. With Deivi García struggling a bit in his first action against the Phillies, this performance by German is extremely exciting and should spur a fantastic position battle moving forward.

Back in 2019, German pitched 143 innings and logged a 4.03 ERA with 9.63 strikeouts per nine. His 18 wins showed the Yankees he could be a viable option in the rotation moving forward. What a suspension behind him and management giving him a second chance at life, he seems to be re-invigorated.

Aside from German, Michael King also had a stellar performance, striking out one batter and allowing one hit over two innings. Altogether, the only negative in the tie was the lack of offensive efficiency and Luis Medina giving up for walks in the eighth inning.

DJ LeMahieu was back to his stellar ways, picking up two hits on two at-bats, but the Yankees gathered a few solid apparel appearances and made contact, striking out nine times, with depth outfielder Michael Beltre picking up two.

The Bombers will take on the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday afternoon at 2:05 PM. Skipper Aaron Boone is also regaining his health after having a pacemaker put on his heart. Boone stated that he hadn’t felt this good in a long time, which will hopefully still over in the regular season and keep him healthy for a long time.