The New York Yankees ace right-handed pitcher Masahiro Tanaka will be back in the rotation sometime early next week, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports. Earlier in the week, Tanaka was shut down with a Grade 1 hamstring strain, but after a successful bullpen session Friday, manager Joe Girardi is going to let Tanaka pitch through his strain hamstring injury. This indicates that Masahiro Tanaka Will be Back in the Rotation much sooner than what was previously expected.
Tanaka hasn’t pitched since September 18, but feels confident enough that he can pitch through the injured hamstring even though he said the strain is “not completely gone.”
Tanaka has had to deal with a few ailments this season, and he’s considered the Yankees best starting pitcher, despite a 12-7 record. In 149 innings pitched he’s posted a 3.38 ERA with a 0.98 WHIP and 136/26 K/BB ratio.
The Yankees remain 4 games behind the American League East leading Toronto Blue Jays with only nine games left to play. As it currently looks, the Yankees will be hosting a Wild Card playoff game. The Yankees would like Tanaka to be available for that game, but if he’s not, they might go with their young rookie pitcher Luis Severino. One other possibility is that they just might go “all hands on deck” as some have suggested and worry about the ALDS if they make it past the Wild Card game.
In two seasons with the New York Yankees, Masahiro Tanaka is 25-12 in 43 games started with a 3.09 ERA. In 285.1 innings, Tanaka has given up 244 hits while striking out 277 hitters and walking only 47 batters.
Before signing with the Yankees, Tanaka played for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles in the Nippon Professional Baseball’s Pacific League from 2007 to 2013. During his stint with the Golden Eagles, Tanaka had a 99-35 record with a 2.30 ERA, 1.108 WHIP and a 1238/275 K/BB ratio.
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