The Yankees are encouraged enough with erstwhile ace Luis Severino's progress rehabbing in the minors that they expect him to pitch in the postseason, the New York Daily News reported Monday.
That's the assessment after Severino, who was shut down during spring training with rotator cuff inflammation and then suffered a strained lat muscle during his initial rehab, saw his first true game action of 2019 on Sunday with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
And though he threw only an inning, his fastball was in the mid-90s and he used all of his pitches, according to the Daily News, which cited an unidentified scout who was at the game.
That's encouraging considering he hadn't pitched in a live game since Oct. 8, 2018.
“Sevy was good, saw him this morning … Flashed some good things,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said before Monday’s Labor Day matinee against the Rangers at Yankee Stadium. “I would put it like a first spring training: 12 pitches in the pen, ends up throwing 45 pitches. So he got stretched out a little more. Said he felt good (Monday) morning — normal post-soreness and stuff. Hopefully another really good step for him. Maybe next time we’ll get three innings and go from there.”
The ace of the Yankees staff in 2018, Severino was 19-8 with a 3.39 ERA. He was expected to anchor a New York rotation this year until the shoulder and side problems derailed his regular season.
The first-place Yankees have the luxury of looking to set their postseason rotation, with or without Severino, well in advance of October. They're 90-48 and hold a 10-game lead over the second-place Rays in the AL East entering Monday's games, though they're neck and neck with the Astros (89-49) for the best record in the American League.
With a limited number of slots available for postseason starts, Masahiro Tanaka and James Paxton appear to have two of the spots nailed down.
If healthy, Severino could make left-hander J.A. Happ a rotation question mark in the postseason.
New York, which re-signed Happ after last season, might be nervous that he could struggle like he did in Game 1 of the 2018 ALDS against the Red Sox.
