The Yankees starting pitching depth may be tested before the season even begins after Nestor Cortes revealed that he had a low-grade 2 hamstring strain on Monday. Pitching was the position that the Bombers had made the most significant upgrade in during the offseason bringing in lefty ace Carlos Rodon.
Even with a question mark around Cortes, who said he is aiming to be ready by opening day, and Frankie Montas likely missing the first month of the season with shoulder inflammation, on paper the Yankees should be able to count on their improved starting staff. The Yankees starting rotation had been one of the best in the majors through the MLB All-Star break last year with the third-best ERA at 3.20.
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The pendulum swung back the other way in the second half and questions around Gerrit Cole’s performance arose, and even trade deadline acquisition Montas didn’t live up to the Billing the Yankees had for him. Still, Cole was the Yankees ace come the postseason and Cortes was the Bombers’ breakout star during their 2022 run to the ALCS.
This time around, the Yankees have added one of the best pitchers in baseball behind Cole in Rodon which gives them a true one-two punch on the hill. Add a healthy Cortes as the Yanks’ No. 3 and that is a pretty intimidating unit.
Rodon is coming off a 14-8 record with a 2.88 ERA and 237 strikeouts for the Giants last season. Additionally, he possessed a 2.91 xFIP, 12 strikeouts per nine, 75.1% left on base rate, and 34.1% ground ball rate in 178 innings pitched, which were the most he’s thrown in his career.
Sandwich that in between Coles, who still had a good season despite the 13-8 record, and Cortes, who finished with a 2.44 ERA and 12 wins, and teams will have a tough time putting runs on the board against the Yankees.
“I think it’s gonna be a lot of fun. I think this team is very special. We have a chance to do a lot of good things and I’m excited to be a part of the ride,” Rodon told the New York Post.
Luis Severin0 as the Yankees No. 4 starter only adds to the expectations for the ball club, considering the way he pitched when he came back from the injured list and put up a 7-3 record with 112 strikeouts. However, his injury issues have been a problem the last couple of years and since 2019 he has only pitched in 26 games.
The flashes have been there when he has been on the mound and the Yankees can only hope that he can bring that through the 162-game schedule. Montas is in a similar boat where injury hurt him once he arrived in New York following being traded near the deadline and he saw his ERA balloon to 6.35 with the Bombers in eight starts.
Montas pitched well in Oakland, which drew Yankees’ general manager Brian Cashman to him in the first place, and if the Yankees can get even a portion of that form back they’ll be in good shape.
“The best starting rotations are the ones when you have a deep talented staff, and every day, yesterday’s starter hands the ball off and the competitive spirit to his teammate and says, ‘Now top that.’ If you can get a collection of talented pitchers that have that type of capability and makeup, that’s when some magical things have a chance to happen,” Cashman told reporters back in December.
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