The New York Yankees are making progress with their injured players, specifically Aaron Judge and Masahiro Tanaka. The latter of the two took a 112 mph line-drive off of his head, thanks to a Giancarlo Stanton comebacker.
However, despite experiencing minor concussion symptoms the day of, Tanaka was able to return home that night. His impressive recovery and motivation to return to the team has been heroic.
Manager Aaron Boone stated on Thursday that he was “really encouraged†by what he saw from Tanaka in his small sample size of pitches in the bullpen. Despite the fact that the Japanese born pitcher will likely miss the first few games of the regular season, which is scheduled to start on July 23 against the Washington Nationals, he could be back within the next two weeks.
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Ask for his session on Thursday, Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake broke it down for the media:
“Really encouraging,†Blake said. “He was right around 88-91 (miles per hour) in the bullpen. I think it was good to see him step on it and show all his pitches. Feel really good about where he’s at.â€
“Of course, we have to see him continue to respond to the different things we put him through,†Boone said. “So far, every step of the way, we’ve been encouraged by what we keep seeing.â€
Ultimately, it boils down to what Tanaka feels he is capable of doing. Anything strenuous could set him back a few days, especially if symptoms return. While there has been nothing but positive sign so far, taking every precaution after a serious injury is necessary.
“What’s the best decision for us and Masa as far as, do we want to build him up entirely at the big league level or do we want him to continue to build up to the point where he’s built up like a starter?†Boone said. “Those will be questions and conversations we’ll have internally and with Masa, for that matter. We’ll see where we are in the next few days, especially after he faces hitters for the first time.â€
Well Tanaka continues to rehabilitate, the Yankees will lean on Gerrit Cole, James Paxton, Jordan Montgomery, J. A. Happ, and potentially a young player like Clarke Schmidt or Deivi Garcia.