CC Sabathia

New York Yankees: CC Sabathia To Return On Sunday

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After less than two weeks on the IL, New York Yankees southpaw CC Sabathia will be returning and will start on Sunday against the Boston Red Sox.

After his start on May 22 against the Orioles, he was placed on the IL with knee inflammation. He had said his knee was acting up for a few weeks and that it was time to take care of it.

The lefty then returned to New York to get a cortisone shot and would feel it out during the mandatory 10 days. After not hearing much for a little over a week, Aaron Boone announced that he would start on Sunday, meaning his shot went well.

Sunday’s game will be at 7:05 PM on ESPN. Sabathia will face David Price of the Red Sox.

New York Yankees Begin Crucial Weekend Series Against Red Sox

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New York Yankees, J.A. Happ

The most famous rivalry in baseball has a bit more importance this weekend.

The New York Yankees are red hot, while the Red Sox are starting to win enough games to get back in contention. Dependent on weather the Red Sox win on Wednesday against the Indians or not, the Yankees will be either 6.5 or 7.5 games ahead of them.

The Red Sox however are still not the closest team to the Yankees. If Tampa beats the Blue Jays on Wednesday, they will be just a game behind the Yankees.

The Yankees are 2-0 in the season series, and wins this weekend will mean more than just bragging rights in the rivalry. A sweep could put the Yankees up to 11 games ahead of the Red Sox, and it would be the largest division lead over them in years.

Tampa has a series with the best team in baseball, the Minnesota Twins this weekend. The Yankees could even grow their lead on them, too.

Who gets the ball?

Thursday’s and Sunday’s pitchers are set in stone for the Yankees. JA Happ will pitch Thursday against Chris Sale, and CC Sabathia will be activated from the IL and will pitch Sunday against David Price.

Eduardo Rodriguez will pitch Friday and Rick Porcello will pitch Saturday for the Red Sox. For the Yankees, Domingo German will pitch one day, while the other day will be a bullpen game.

If Happ can give the Yankees distance on Thursday, the bullpen game will be on Friday. In the case that he can’t, then the bullpen game would be on Saturday and German would throw on Friday. If German pitches on Saturday, he will be going on an extra day of rest. That would be the A plan for the Yankees.

On the other side of the plate, Gary Sanchez should be rested and ready to catch all four games this weekend. He sat Thursday to rest and give Austin Romine a few at-bats.

And, the high leverage bullpen guys should be well rested for Thursday. Adam Ottavino pitched one inning on Wednesday, and Jonathan Holder pitched two.

The Yankees will look to have a big weekend to extend their division lead, as well as bragging rights in the greatest rivalry in sports.

Why the New York Yankees don’t need Dallas Keuchel

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Should the New York Yankees consider looking into starting pitcher Dallas Keuchel.

While most are wondering if the New York Yankees will need starting pitching help in the next few weeks, it’s important to recognize the success enjoyed by the team thus far. Sitting at 34-18 on the season, the Yanks have been breezing by with tons of injuries plaguing the team.

Losing Luis Severino before the starting of the regular season and now without James Paxton, CC Sabathia, and Jonathan Loaisiga, the rotation is in a bit of trouble. However, I don’t believe that supplementing the losses with former Astros pitcher Dallas Keuchel makes much sense.

The reality is, Keuchel wants a long-term contract in conjunction with a boat-load of cash. The Yankees don’t need to spend that time of money when the team is surviving and has one of the best records in baseball.

As long as they can survive until after the All-Star Break, the Bombers will be ‘okay’. Eventually, Severino will return and bring his talented arm with him, and Paxton is about half a week away from rejoining the starting rotation. The expectation is that he will feature on Wednesday against the San Diego Padres.

But reports have indicated that Paxton still isn’t entirely healthy, as he will wear a brace to mitigate the flaring of inflammation in his knee.

“Hoping that he’s in line now to join the rotation,” Boone said. “He’ll fly back to New York (Sunday) but we’ll all get together to make sure he’s ready to join us and make that call.”

Sabathia recently joined the injured list with inflammation in his right knee and will be out for a few weeks. Losing quality starters certainly advocates for the signing of Keuchel, but as long as the Yanks are surviving and winning games, bringing him in on an unnecessary contract isn’t justified.

How can the New York Yankees counter poor pitching?

Alternatively, the offense can make up for the lack of pitching talent. With Didi Gregorius nearing a return, the Yanks will have plenty of firepower to increase their run support to help the pitchers.  Gaining back Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton eventually will further bolster the lineup and make the signing of Keuchel redundant.

New York Yankees: CC Sabathia Likely To IL

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CC Sabathia and the New York Yankees believe that the veteran lefty will be heading to the IL with knee inflammation.

Sabathia said after his start on Wednesday against the Orioles that his knee had been acting up for a few starts and that it’s “Something I [Sabathia} need to take care of”.

The lefty will not be traveling with the team to Kansas City, and will instead head back to New York. There he will likely get a cortisone shot to remove liquid in his knee.

CC has been really effective this year

Sabathia’s final season has so far been a good one.

On Wednesday against the Orioles, he went five innings while giving up four runs and striking out seven.

For the season, Sabathia is 3-1 with a 3.48 ERA over eight starts. His veteran presence in the dugout is key, helping to lead the younger players.

If all goes well, Sabathia should only miss one start. James Paxton should be ready to be activated once CC’s scheduled start rolls around, so Paxton will fill his spot in the rotation.

 

CC Sabathia Picks Up Strikeout 3,000, But The New York Yankees Lose To Arizona

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New York Yankees, Yankees, CC Sabathia

With his five strikeouts, CC Sabathia became the 17th in MLB history to register 3,000 career strikeouts. However, the New York Yankee offense was quiet and scored just one run in a loss to Arizona.

CC was solid

Over 5 and 1/3 innings, CC Sabathia gave up five hits and two runs, and got charged with the loss. He just had no run support.

CC walked two and fell behind too many batters, getting just nine first pitch strikes to 23 faced batters. He got six ground-balls and five fly-balls, and one ball left the yard. The home run was to former Met, Wilmer Flores.

The batter that CC struck out for 3,000 was former Yankee John Ryan Murphy, the player that caught Mariano Rivera in his final MLB appearance.

CC Sabathia hitting 3,000 strikeouts is just one of many great accomplishments for the lefty, adding on to his hall of fame career. Now he can focus on his final season without milestone pressure.

A lack of offense

After explosive offense in San Francisco, the Yankees had some trouble hitting in Arizona. But, you can’t expect much with guys like Mike Tauchman batting fifth.

The Yankees got just five hits, and their lone run came in relatively early. Gleyber Torres bounced in a run on a ground rule double in the fourth inning. Torres had two hits, the only Yankee with multiple.

Gardner, Sanchez, and newly acquired Cameron Maybin each had a hit. Luke Voit extended his on-base streak to 40 with a walk.

DJ LeMahieu did not play as he was listed as day-to-day with knee inflammation from the San Francisco series, and Gio Urshela was also listed day-to-day but pinch-hit later on. Urshela was hit by a pitch in his wrist on Sunday.

Holder looking more normal

After a rough start to the season, it appears that Jonathan Holder is back to his usual self. He pitched 1 and 2/3 hitless innings, walking one. His ERA is now down to 4.50,  and was a 7.00 two weeks ago.

Zack Britton relieved Holder, and gave up a run and two hits. The run scored off a sacrifice fly. This was Britton’s first bad outing in a while, after a few bad ones to start the season he had settled into a groove.

The final game of this short two game set takes place at 3:40PM (ET) on YES and Fox Sports Go. Masahiro Tanaka (2-2, 3.60 ERA) gets the ball against Merrill Kelly (2-2, 3.94 ERA) of the Diamondbacks. The Yankees head home after Wednesday to face the the Twins and Mariners.

New York Yankees: DJ LeMahieu Leads Five-Run Comeback Over Angels

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New York Yankees, DJ LeMahieu

DJ LeMahieu had two hits and three RBIs to help dig the New York Yankees out of a five run deficit to beat the Angels 6-5.  The Yankees have now won six consecutive games.

DJ saves the day

Tyler Wade led the sixth inning off with an infield single, and scored the next pitch off a double by LeMahieu. LeMahieu scored a few batters later on a passed ball by Angels’ catcher Jonathan Lucroy.

In the seventh, Wade drew a bases-loaded walk to score a run. LeMahieu hit a sacrifice fly and Luke Voit hit a fielder’s choice, each scoring a run to tie it up.

After two outs to start the ninth, Wade singled to start a rally. With LeMahieu up, Wade stole second before he was knocked in to go ahead.

Aroldis Chapman pitched a scoreless bottom of the inning as the Yankees held on for the win.

Luke Voit extended his on-base streak with a walk in the first, now at 35 games. He also had a hit to extend his hitting streak to 11 games.

Three away from 3K

CC Sabathia struggled a bit in his third start of the season, but his three strikeouts put him three away from 3,000 on his career.

CC allowed five runs (four earned) in five innings, giving up six hits and three home runs. He got 14 first pitch strikes to 22 batters. Sabathia had trouble keeping it on the ground, getting eight fly-balls to just five ground-balls.

Jonathan Loaisiga finally got some work in, however it was out of the bullpen. He was originally expected to start one of the Anaheim games.

The righty pitched three innings in relief, allowed two hits and picked up the win. He walked one and struck out one. Loaisiga was also optioned to AAA following the game.

Game four of the series takes place on Thursday at 9:07PM (ET) on YES and Fox Sports Go. Masahiro Tanaka gets the ball for the Yankees against Trevor Cahill of the Angels.

Clint Frazier Shows Off Arm As Yankees Top Royals 6-2

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New York Yankees, Clint Frazier

With runners on first and third and nobody out, Whit Merrifield flew out to New York Yankees right-fielder Clint Frazier. Frazier caught it on a hop and threw home to get Martin Maldonado out, as he was attempting to tag-up. The throw hit 95 MPH. It helped CC Sabathia work out of a third inning mess with giving up just one run. This helped pave the way for a 6-2 Yankee win over the Royals.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OvWovs207Vs

Vintage CC

CC Sabathia had another great start over five innings. He gave up three hits and zero earned runs, striking out five in his first win of the year. A couple third inning errors by himself and Luke Voit allowed for one unearned run to cross. He continued to thrive by working weak contact.

CC is very close to three huge milestones. He is three wins away from 250, six strikeouts away from 3,000, and 20 innings away from 3,500 on his career.

Through ten innings this season, CC hasn’t given up a single earned run. He continues to have success in pitching after a Yankee loss. That was also CC’s 22nd win over the Royals in his hall-of-fame career.

Unlikely power figures

Brett Gardner had a two-run home run, and Mike Tauchman had a solo-shot to lead the Yankees. The home runs were in the third ind fifth innings, respectively.

The Yankees added two more in the sixth, thanks to a sacrifice fly hit by DJ LeMahieu, and Luke Voit scored on a wild pitch ball four that put Clint Frazier on.

In the seventh, Tyler Wade laid down a good bunt that resulted in a throwing error, scoring Kyle Higashioka. Wade was the only Yankee with multiple hits.

Game three of this four game set will be on Saturday at 1:05PM. The game will be live on MLB Network, YES Network, and FOX Sports Go. Masahiro Tanaka gets the ball for the Yankees against Heath Fillmyer of the Royals.

 

New York Yankees Get Back on Track With 4-0 Win Over White Sox

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Just a day after giving up 12 hits in a rain shortened loss, the New York Yankees pitching staff shut it down by allowing just one hit as the Yankees beat the White Sox 4-0.

Welcome back big fella

After health issues, CC Sabathia made his season debut and was excellent. He pitched just five innings as the Yankees didn’t want to stretch him, but gave up just one hit. He struck out three and walked nobody in his 62 pitches.

CC had the slider working well, getting all three strikeouts with it. He did what he does best by working for soft contact and trusting your defense. The one hit he gave up was on a cutter that was a bit to up in the zone.

In conclusion, a great return for the lefty here in his final season.

The bullpen finally decided to show up on Saturday, pitching four no-hit innings. Domingo German came in for two innings of relief and was credited with the win.

Zack Britton and Aroldis Chapman had the eighth and ninth innings respectively, each pitching 1-2-3 innings and picking up a strikeout.

A balanced offense

For once, the offense was pretty balanced on Saturday. The Yankees had seven hits and each one came from a different player.

Going into the bottom of the seventh, the game was actually tied but the Yankees changed that by putting up a three spot. They used some small ball as Luke Voit had a pinch hit RBI single, followed by a sacrifice fly by Kyle Higashioka and a suicide squeeze by Tyler Wade.

In the eighth inning, Aaron Judge punched one into the seats in right for a short 335 foot home run to make it 4-0, that being the final score.

The rubber match between the White Sox and the Yankees will be on Sunday at 1:05PM. The game will be on YES Network and FOX Sports Go. Masahiro Tanaka gets the ball for the Yankees against Carlos Rodon of the White Sox.

 

New York Yankees: Why There is No Need to Worry About Their Slow Start

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New York Yankees, Aaron Hicks

The New York Yankees have gotten off to a less than flattering 3-4 start in 2019, highlighted by losing two out of three to two of the league’s worst teams. There is disappointment with the four losses, but there shouldn’t be any worry, yet. There are a lot of contributing factors to their early struggles, so let’s review them.

Injuries

Obviously, injuries are the prominent factor in the Yankees early season struggles.10 main guys are on the IL in Jordan Montgomery, Miguel Andujar, Didi Gregorius, Aaron Hicks, Jacoby Ellsbury, Dellin Betances, CC Sabathia, Luis Severino, Troy Tulowitzki, and Giancarlo Stanton.

We know that Stanton will be back in about three weeks, and that Sabathia could possibly make his next start.

Hicks is just beginning baseball activities, Betances is throwing off a mound and should be ready for rehab soon, while Severino is still throwing on flat ground.

We don’t know a whole lot about the rest of the injuries. We’ll know in about 10 days weather the Yankees can start up Andujar again, or if he’ll need season-ending surgery.

Detroit and Baltimore are off to good starts

The Yankees have played two teams that got off to hot starts.

After taking two out of three against the Yankees, the Orioles went north of the border and took two of three from the Blue Jays before losing to the Yankees in their home opener on Thursday.

The Tigers started the season in Canada, splitting a four game series there. They came to New York to take two of three from the Yankees afterwards, then took their home opener against the Royals.

They aren’t alone

The Yankees are not the only World Series favorite to be losing a lot early. At 3-4, the Yankees are better than some other teams record wise.

The Red Sox are off to a terrible 2-7 start with the worst run differential in the MLB at -26. The Houston Astros have started off 2019 at 3-5. Like the Yankees, they have won the first game of each series and that’s it. Remember, the Yankees and the Astros play on Monday.

Off to the worst start in the MLB are the Chicago Cubs. After winning their opener, they have lost six straight to put themselves at 1-6.

This shows to tell that the best teams don’t always get out to hot starts.

This has happened before

Most years, the Yankees aren’t great out of the gate. They started 5-6 last year en route to a 100 win season.

In 2016, they started out 9-17 on the way to an 84 win season.

In 2009, the Yankees started out 3-4 as they would win it all come October.

The Yankees will get healthy and get back to normal. It may take a while, but they always seem to figure it out.

Morale of the story: the Yankees will be ok, and it’s just a matter of time until they win a lot of games and Baltimore and Detroit start to lose a lot of games. Sadly, it’s also just a matter of time until the team from Boston starts to win too.

New York Yankees: Dellin Betances to Start Season on Injured List

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During Tuesday’s spring training game on the YES Network, New York Yankees GM Brian Cashman announced in an interview that hard-throwing relief pitcher Dellin Betances will start the 2019 season on the injured list. Cashman said that in an MRI, he showed to have shoulder inflammation and the team is calling it a “shoulder impingement.” The team expects Betances to be throwing again “in 3 to 5 days.”

Betances had not been himself during spring training. He had an ERA of 5.40 in just four outings, and the team was concerned about his velocity. His fastball was only reaching 88 to 92 mph, much lower than his 96 to 100 mph average. He has had issues with getting off to a fast start, literally. His ERA is always a bit higher in the early part of the season, and way high in spring training with his strikeout rate lower.

More Injuries

This now leads to even more early season injury concerns from the Yankees. Though he is the only bullpen guy out right now, the Yankees are down two starters in CC Sabathia and Luis Severino. Aaron Hicks will not be ready until at least the second series of the season, Didi Gregorius is out until summer because of his Tommy John surgery, and who knows about Jacoby Ellsbury.

Like last year, the Yankees will need to have a “next man up” mentality to fill these roster spots. Young guys will be stepping up and providing a lot to start the season, especially on the pitching staff. Those pitchers may be Jonathan Loaisiga, Domingo German, Stephen Tarpley, and Luis Cessa.