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Position Battle: CC Sabathia vs Ivan Nova

By Christian Kouroupakis

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All the starting roles for the New York Yankees seemed to be filled, but the lone position battle for a starting job will be between CC Sabathia and Ivan Nova. 

Barring injury, the 2016 Yankees seem to have every spot occupied.

MLB Network’s sixth best catcher Brian McCann will be behind the plate, Mark Teixeira will play first, the newly acquired Starlin Castro is the second baseman, Didi Gregorius looks to build on his strong second half of 2015 as the shortstop, Chase Headley  is at the hot corner, and Brett Gardner, Jacoby Ellsbury, and Carlos Beltran makeup the outfield squad. Alex Rodriguez will be handling the designated hitter duties this year.

As of now, the Yankees’ starting rotation starts with Masahiro Tanaka as the ace followed by Nathan Eovaldi, Michael Pineda, and Luis Severino, in no particular order. The only starting position battle to watch this spring training when it comes to the pitching staff will be the job for the fifth starting pitcher role.

Either Ivan Nova, who the Yankees wanted to trade this offseason, or CC Sabathia, a former Cy Young Award winner who is coming off the two worst seasons of his career followed by a stint in alcohol rehab, will earn a spot on this years starting rotation. The winner will be handed the ball every fifth day with the loser likely heading to the bullpen.

Bryan Mitchell will also be in the mix, but the main event will be Sabathia and Nova.

In 2014, Sabathia went 3-4 with a 5.28 ERA and followed that by going 6-10 with a 4.73 ERA and a career-high 28 home runs allowed in 167⅓ innings in 2015. The big lefty will be 36 in July and is owed $25 million this season, with an option for another $25 million in 2017.

Sep 23, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; New York Yankees starting pitcher Ivan Nova (47) throws against the Toronto Blue Jays in the first inning at Rogers Centre. The Yankees are wearing the number 8 on their sleeves as a tribute Yogi Berra. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 23, 2015; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; New York Yankees starting pitcher Ivan Nova (47) throws against the Toronto Blue Jays in the first inning at Rogers Centre. The Yankees are wearing the number 8 on their sleeves as a tribute Yogi Berra. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports /

Nova returned from Tommy John Surgery in June and went 6-11 with a 5.07 ERA. The 29-year old signed a $4.1 million contract for 2016, and will become a free agent after this season. I’ll bet this will be his last year in pinstripes, unless he rises from the dead and flashes his 2011 form (16-4, 3.70 ERA).

Sabathia is a player and person who is well respected, has great pride and a terrific resume who has not been in the position of having to win a job since he first broke into the league in 2001 with the Cleveland Indians. For the 2016 CC, however, it’s a different ballplayer, and a different situation.

We all know that Yankees’ skipper Joe Girardi does not care about resume, length of service, or the amount of money a player makes. The best five starting pitchers to come out of training camp are the ones he will take to the Bronx, regardless.

Girardi has no problem telling Sabathia to head on over to the bullpen, but he does find promise in the lefty’s performance last September. He went 2-1 with a 2.17 ERA in five starts while only allowing two dingers in 29 innings pitched.

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    • Prior to the American League Wild Card Game vs the Houston Astros, CC surprised the whole Yankee organization by checking himself into an alcohol rehabilitation center.

    In December, months after his rehab concluded, Sabathia described his physical condition as “light years ahead” of his usual and predicted that he would come to camp lighter and ready to resurrect his legacy as being one of the most dominant pitchers in the AL.

    On the flip side, Nova dug himself into a hole with his performance in 2015, losing eight of his last 10 decisions while owning a 6.58 ERA. He also allowed nine home runs in those final 10 starts.

    Inconsistency is a common theme for Nova, but his huge drop-off at the end of last season could be blamed on fatigue after a long rehab process and his first season back in the major leagues. Two years removed from the surgery could help his arm get stronger and lead to an improved 2016, but the unpredictable Nova may be on a continuous decline since elbow surgery.

    There may be an opportunity both pitchers could see some time as starters this year. Injuries are unfortunately common for the Yankees, and there is always a chance that one of the four starting pitchers will get hurt.

    Tanaka is coming off clean-up elbow surgery and Eovaldi ended 2015 on the DL with a forearm strain. Pineda has had shoulder problems but made 28 starts last year. Assuming everyone stays healthy, there is only one starting job open on the Yankees’ roster this spring.

    Related Story: Tanaka Behind on Workouts

    And the one starter with the most impressive resume, has his job and legacy on the line as Spring Training approaches.

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