On Monday, the New York Yankees removed Nathan Eovaldi from their starting rotation. Yankees manager Joe Girardi was forced to remove the struggling starter from the rotation in favor of the rookie Chad Greene. Greene on the season is 1-1 with a 4.09 ERA, which includes one start, but it’s in Triple-A where he’s shined with a 1.54 ERA.
Yankees Ax Nathan Eovaldi From Starting Rotation
Girardi has done his best to try and put a good spin on this by suggesting this move to the bullpen is not a permanent one, but a move that is only temporary until Eovaldi can get himself back on track and pitching well.
In Eovaldi’s last start, which was his sixth consecutive poor start, he had his fourth consecutive loss, a 7-6 defeat at the hands of the San Diego Padres. In his last six starts, Eovaldi has gone 0-4 with an ERA of 9.20, while his opponents have a slash line against him of .344/.399/.710, making his move to the bullpen an obvious one. From June 3 on, opposing teams have batted .344 with a 1.109 OPS against Eovaldi, which includes 12 home runs. The 19 home runs that Eovaldi has allowed this season have already surpassed his career high.
The Yankees acquired Eovaldi in a trade with the Miami Marlins in December of 2014, and in his first season in pinstripes, Eovaldi went 14-3 with a 4.20 ERA. This season, however, has been nothing short of frustrating for both the Yankees and Eovaldi.
A seven game stretch that lasted from April and continued through the month of May saw Eovaldi go 6-0 with an ERA of 2.72. This gave the Yankees and their fans something to feel positive about. But following that hot start, Eovaldi has been unable to buy a win, going 0-4 with a 9.20 ERA in his last six outings.
Rookie Chad Greene, who will be taking Eovaldi’s spot in the rotation for now, pitched six strong innings of one-run ball while striking out eight batters in Sunday’s 6-3 win over the Padres. After coming off his first major league win, rookie Chad Greene looks to get his first road start on Friday night against the Cleveland Indians.
New York Yankees’ Pitching Situation
Girardi has made it clear that he has no plans of going with a six man rotation following the All-Star break, but he also envisions Eovaldi as a starter. This begs the question of what the Yankees’ rotation look like following the All-Star break. As of now it looks as if the rookie Greene has the job until he loses it, while Eovaldi helps bridge the gap to Dellin Betances, Andrew Miller, and Aroldis Chapman.
On the nights that the big three relievers can’t go, Eovaldi, with his high 90-MPH fastballs and splitters, could be an effective weapon for Girardi to use in case he needs Eovaldi to cover for one or two of the big three relievers.
Yankees pitcher Luis Severino has been pushing for a return to the big leagues after he was demoted to the minors on May 30. Since then, Severino has gone 4-0 with a 3.16 ERA in his first six starts with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. With Ivan Nova struggling as mightily as he has, allowing 26 earned runs and 46 hits in 34 innings over his last six starts while sporting a 6.88 ERA, one has to wonder how much longer it is Severino is recalled to the majors. Despite Nova’s recent struggles, he did pitch extremely well in his last start, allowing only one run on four hits while striking out seven in a 2-1 loss.
Main Image:
