Cory Kluber

New York Yankees Analysis: Major takeaways from the first week of spring training

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Baseball has been relatively kind to the New York Yankees so far in spring training. Two big things are prominent, the Yankees have no major injuries to key players, and the pitching of pitchers that have not pitched in awhile has been better than good. At this point in spring training, which is only a week old, things look pretty good for the Yankees. The Miami Marlins lead the pack so far with a 4-1 record, the Yankees are in the middle of the pack with a 3-3 record. But the bottom line is that wins are irrelevant in spring training; it’s all about evaluating the players for the regular season and building up the players to take on a 162 game season.

Here’s a look at the Yankees’ spring training so far; keep in mind that this is just a tiny sample.

Domingo German:

Domingo German has only started one game in spring training, but he looked outstanding in his two innings pitched. He didn’t allow a run and had only one hit, with no walks and 4 strikeouts, that 18 strikeouts per nine innings. So far, of all Yankees pitchers, he looks the best. Before his suspension, he was 18-4 during the 2019 season. It’s early, but so far for the New York Yankees, German looks very encouraging.

Corey Kluber:

Kluber has only pitched one inning in the past two years but is a 2 time Cy Young Award winner. If he can return to his previous form, the Yankees have another ace on their hands. Kluber seems healthy, and in his two innings, he looked good, allowing no runs while striking out 3 hitters. He also has not allowed a hit.  Although the sample is small, this is another encouraging sign for the Yankees.

Jameson Taillon:

Taillon is coming back from his second Tommy John surgery. The Yankees picked him up in a trade with the Pirates. So far this season, he pitched in relief in one game, and for an inning, he allowed no runs; he faced three batters striking out one. Yesterday he had his first start in the first inning; he put away the Pirates. In the second inning, he had a good test; he allowed two singles and walked the bases full. Taillon worked out of trouble and has not allowed a run in spring training.

Gerrit Cole:

Gerrit Cole so far has not started the season as he would have wished. Cole has not been allowed to pitch to his personal catcher in spring training, not in a bullpen session or in this one inning start. His ERA is 9.00. In his game with Gary Sanchez catching, he had three hits with a run scored and only one strikeout. Last season the ERA with Higashioka compared to Sanchez was demonstrative.

Deivi Garcia:

Simply put, Garcia got hammered in his lone start. He gave up two runs in two innings of work for an ERA of 9.00. The good takeaways are that he struck out 3 hitters of the eight he faced and did not allow a walk. He was a victim of the long ball. Garcia made his major league debut last year and is contending for a rotation spot this season.

DJ LeMahieu:

LeMahieu last season batted .364 and was the batting champ for all of baseball. During the offseason, he signed a six-year deal with the New York Yankees. So far in spring training, he has picked up where he left off last season. He is batting .500 4 hits in eight plate appearances.

Gary Sanchez:

We all know that Gary Sanchez had a horrible season last year, batting only .147. The Yankees are looking for a major rebound this year to the kind of player he has the potential to be. So far, the signs are encouraging, he has performed well catching and has a home run to his credit in every four plate appearances. The power is definitely there.

Gleyber Torres:

Torres is another player that had a subpar season last year. Torres has been in four games for eight appearances at the plate and has a home run to his credit. He is batting .500. He had only 3 home runs in all of last season. So far, there have been no issues at shortstop. The Yankees hope he will bounce back to his All-Star form.

Gio Urshela:

Urshela has had limited playing time so far this spring training. He has had no hits in his two times at the plate. But the good news for Urshela is that there appear to be no lingering issues resulting from his elbow surgery.

Jay Bruce/Derek Dietrich:

Bruce and Dietrich were offseason pickups for the Yankees. Both are in contention for a place on the bench, and both are making the best of it. Bruce has three hits, one a double, and is batting .750. Dietrich has a home run and 2 RBI’s, and a 1.833 OPS. They will be competing with the likes of Tyler Wade and Mike Ford, so far they are winning the challenge.

Giancarlo Stanton/Aaron Judge/Luke Voit:

If there is any bad news, it’s that the big three, Judge, Stanton, and Voit, haven’t performed as they warmup for the regular season. Judge is batting .250 with 2 doubles in 9 plate appearances. Stanton, who was so hot in the postseason, has gotten no hits in his 4 times behind the plate. Luke Voit, last year’s baseball home run leader, is batting just 1.11 in 9 at-bats with no home runs.

All in all the New York Yankees are in pretty good shape entering their second week of spring training on a route to a 28th World Championship.

New York Yankees to pursue Cy Young Award winner in free agency

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New York Yankees, Corey Kluber

The New York Yankees are preparing to make an effort to fill the number two pitching spot behind Gerrit Cole for the 2021 season.

After dropping a nine-year, $324 million deal for Cole, the Yankees are trying desperately to stay beneath the $210 million luxury tax threshold. However, they have a bit of money opening up with the departures of James Paxton, Masahiro Tanaka, and JA Happ.

Nonetheless, some reports have indicated the Yankees are interested in bringing back Tanaka and have appeal in several different alternatives this off-season, but one name that has bubbled to the surface is former Cy Young picture Corey Kluber.

ESPN’s Buster Olney reports that “a rival executive speculates that given the developments in the starting pitching market, and the respective team needs, he sees Corey Kluber landing with the Yankees, Mets or Red Sox.”

The New York Yankees will be in the mix at the top for pitching, as always:

Kluber offers a more realistic option behind Cole, and he could be revitalized to his previous form with a change of scenery. Kluber pitched just 1.0 innings in 2020 due to a Grade 2 teres major strain.
If the injury is, in fact, behind him, the Yankees could land him on a cheaper contract than Tanaka and possibly get exponential value.
Taking a look at his last productive season in 2018, Kluber pitched 215.0 innings, earning a 2.89 ERA with a 44.4% ground ball rate, a category he’s very consistent in. He struck out 9.29 batters per nine, but his 2019 season was also influenced by injuries. Over the past two years, Corey has only played in 36.2 innings, but similar to Luis Severino, the Yankees could still have confidence in his abilities. Considering prior to his 2019 campaign, he was one of the best pitchers in the MLB and represented a massive upgrade, taking a flier on him is a high-risk, high reward move.
Kluber did see a decrease in velocity the past two seasons over a small sample size, but nothing significant compared to the 2018 season. His primary pitcher are his cutter, sinker, and slider. He’s not a fastball pitcher, utilizing offspeed pitches that hover in the high 90s and mid-80s to confuse batters.
Personally, I think Kluber could be a fantastic option for the Yankees if he’s willing to settle for less than $15 million per season.
Again, I believe the Yankees could benefit from a contract with Kluber on a short-term deal, but there is still interest in bringing back Tanaka. If they can resurrect Kluber’s past performances, he could be a perfect option for a team that tends to invest in injury-prone stop-gap players like James Paxton.

New York Yankees Analysis: Should the Yankees re-sign Tanaka or get Cory Kluber?

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Tonight by 8 pm, the New York Yankees will have decided on Gary Sanchez, whether to tender him or let him loose. That is just one of the decisions the Yankees will have to make. But the big question this offseason is what the Yankees will do to shore up their sub-par pitching rotation? General manager Brian Cashman in his usual manner, has been tight-lipped about any action he might take. We do know that the Yankees have been in contact with Tanaka; how far that has gone is anyone’s guess.

With the Yankees not likely to spend big for a Trevor Bauer in a year that they will be watching every penny, might they take a chance on Cory Kluber? Kluber is a Cy Young Award pitcher; he pitched for the Cleveland Indians for nine years, racking up a 98-58 record. After being injured in 2019, he was traded to the Texas Rangers. Unfortunately for the Rangers, he ended up pitching in just one game. Though Kluber is certainly a risk given he suffered a broken forearm in 2019 and a Grade 2 shoulder tear in 2020, his ceiling is proven to be a Cy Young-caliber ace.

When comparing Masahiro Tanaka to Cory Kubler, Tanaka carries his own baggage, a partially torn UCL, that the Yankees have to worry about. He could require Tommy John surgery at any time the longer he pitches. Kluber has been cleared to have a normal pitching routine this offseason. It is questionable that he will be 100% at the beginning of the 2021 season. Assuming he will be at full strength midseason, can you imagine a one-two punch in the postseason with Cole and Kluber. That pairing could be the best one-two punch the Yankees have had since 2009.

Kluber does have ties to the New York Yankees, most notably with pitching coach Matt Blake who Kluber worked with while with the Cleveland Indians. He has also worked out in previous offseasons with Eric Cressey, New York’s Director of Player Health & Performance.

Masahiro Tanaka was never the ace the Yankees hoped he would be, and he has regressed some overtime. With Tanaka, the Yankees know what they are getting if they decide to re-sign him. They will be getting an average pitcher that can eat up some innings as far as his postseason value has been greatly reduced. In 2020 he failed miserably in his two appearances in the ALDS and ALCS, racking up an ERA in the stratosphere over 12.00.

Financially both pitchers won’t be cheap, but with Kluber only pitching in eight games in the past two seasons, the Yankee might be able to work out a deal that would be satisfactory for both parties. At the worst, he could be a bust; at best, the Cole, Kluber pairing could be the best pairing going into a postseason the Yankees have ever had.

Another power right-hander who strikes out a ton of batters would go a long way for the rotation, too. Deivi Garcia isn’t an overwhelming righty; Jordan Montgomery is a crafty lefty; Tanaka throws low-90s; and the team can’t bank on Luis Severino being his normal self next season, especially since he’s not expected back until June or July.

If the New York Yankees are willing to take the risk, Kluber could be the fix the Yankees could use. Another consideration is that the Yankees will not want to face Kluber for the Red Sox, Astros, or Tampa Bay Ray, who all will be looking for pitching, especially the Red Sox.

I would still like to see the New York Yankees sign Trevor Bauer, an immediate upgrade from Cory Kluber. But unless general manager Brian Cashman has a blockbuster in mind, the Yankees will not spend for Bauer in these uncertain times. The photo accompanying this story is not Kluber shaving his beard preparing to become a Yankee; he lost a bet and had to shave it on Twitter.