Yankees News: Starting pitching demotion, new face in the clubhouse

New York Yankees, Michael King
Feb 28, 2021; Tampa, Florida, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher Michael King (73) throws a pitch against the Toronto Blue Jays during the first inning at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Yankees are coming off a 7-0 blowout win over the Baltimore Orioles, thanks to a dominant performance from Domingo German, who picked up six strikeouts and gave us three hits over 7.0 innings. The offense finally broke out, recording 12 hits and displayed consistency throughout the lineup.

The top three batters were stellar in the victory, as DJ LeMahieu, Giancarlo Stanton, and Gleyber Torres combined for seven hits and struck out just one time combined. It was an altogether perfect performance for a team that has been struggling to remain consistent on both sides of the ball.

Despite Michael King allowing just one hit and struck out two batters over two innings to close out the victory, the Yankees demoted him to the alternate site as they prepare for the welcoming of Wandy Peralta, who they acquired in the trade with a San Francisco Giants that sent Mike Tauchman on his way.

A frustrating move for King, who looked good in the victory, but Peralta is a lefty pitcher who brings a bit more diversity to the bullpen. King does have 11 scoreless innings this season, which makes this move a bit more confusing, but I imagine he will make a return at some point in the coming days.

Peralta, on the other hand, has pitched in 10 games this year with San Francisco, earning a 5.40 ERA and 8.64 strikeouts per nine. He does have a high ground ball ratio, which is suited well for Yankee Stadium. He’s been a bit inconsistent in the past but did post a 3.29 ERA over 25 appearances last year. He primarily uses a fastball, slider, and changeup spread around quite efficiently.

This is a solid addition for the Yankees, as Tauchman wasn’t offering them a spark plug off the bench, and adding pitching during a grueling regular season is always a benefit. The Yankees had engaged in potential trade talks during the spring for Mike, but general manager Brian Cashman demanded significant value based on his performance in 2019.

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