Yankees: Pineda Shows Up, Yanks Win, But Don’t Buy The House Yet
The Yankees delighted 46,955 fans who came out for the season opener at Yankee Stadium to watch the team grab its second consecutive win in a game that was never contested by the Tampa Bay Rays.
The Yankees powered up today smashing three home runs off Tampa Bay pitching while getting a superb and very efficient effort from Michael Pineda, who carried a perfect game into the eighth inning.
Chase Headley, Aaron Judge, and Starlin Castro supplied the power for a lineup that has been depleted due to injuries (Gary Sanchez) and general wear and tear (Greg Bird). In addition to this trio, four other Yankees also drove in at least one run on the day.
But the story of the day rests with the much maligned Pineda, who added to his enigmatic history with the Yankees by throwing first-pitch strikes to 20 of the 25 batters he faced over 7.2 innings of work.
In sharp contrast to his first outing last week against the same Rays when he appeared to throw up the white flag in a Yankees loss, he appeared to be in full command of himself on the mound today.
Is This The Real Michael Pineda?
No, absolutely it is not the real Pineda. And I hate to put a damper on a day when the Yankees got a much-needed win on their first day back in the Bronx, but the real Pineda is the pitcher who can’t put together a string of even three quality starts together.
The real Pineda is the person who can pitch lights out when the stars are aligned correctly, as they apparently were today, but who also can’t muster enough self-control to meet the challenge of pitching well on days when things don’t “feel” exactly right.
The real Pineda is the person the Yankees have coddled and made excuses for time and time again.
The real Pineda is the pitcher whose value will never be higher than it is today. And for that reason, Brian Cashman should be working the phones until midnight to find a suitor for the real “Baby” Bomber.
Seattle might be a good place to start with the Mariners all but buried in AL West by winning only once in the first week of the season. After all, this is where it all started for Pineda before the Mariners dealt him to the Yankees way back in 2012.
That’s one side of the argument, albeit a hard one to refute given the history Pineda has with the Yankees, but………..
Here’s The Other Side
It could be that it’s high time for team management, and especially pitching coach Larry Rothschild, to stand up and take some of the responsibility for the pitcher Pineda has become. Because when you get right down to it, the Yankees have created their own monster.
And it’s not like Rothschild and the rest of his staff haven’t failed before with pitchers similar to Pineda who, for one reason or another, just don’t seem to get it. How is it, for instance, that Ivan Nova can move over to the Pirates under the tutelage of Ray Searage, win ten games in half a season, and become a mainstay in the Pittsburgh rotation?
And if Rothschild isn’t sitting down with Pineda right now before the clubhouse breaks up and goes home, then he should be. And he should be congratulating him for what he did today, and encouraging others to come by Pineda’s locker to simply say, “Nice going.”
But then, Rothschild should be turning the conversation to Pineda’s next start, which will come against a real Major League lineup when the Cardinals come in to face the Yankees in a weekend set at the Stadium.
And talking with him about the importance of mentally getting prepared for that start. And by the way, maybe you could come in early tomorrow, and we’ll take a look at some of the film we have on the Cardinals hitters. And so on.
Because I’m just not convinced that the team has taken an interest in helping Pineda to become, not only a better pitcher but a better professional athlete who goes about his business every day in a way that breeds success at any level of play.
Here’s Joe Girardi on today’s victory courtesy of the YES Network:
Turning The Page
In a signal that the Yankees took my advice (thank you very much) and instead of waiting until April 16 when the calendar says they need a fifth starter, announced today that Jordan Montgomery is ordained as their fifth starter and not only that, he’ll be starting when the Yankees resume play on Wednesday.
This should be a signal that the Yankees are not conceding the 2017 season in any way.
Gary Sanchez will miss at least a month according to team spokesmen, and Greg Bird is day to day recovering from flu-like symptoms and a sore foot.