Yankees place Jordan Montgomery on 10-day DL; now what?

After leaving Tuesday night’s game after only seven pitches, the Yankees, today, placed starter, Jordan Montgomery on the 10-day DL with a left elbow strain.

You never want to hear that a pitcher is headed to the disabled list with an elbow strain, especially not a 25-year-old left-hander starter. But that’s the case, as the Yankees will be without Jordan Montgomery for at least the next 10-days. 

Following Domingo German’s stellar four-inning relief appearance, where he scattered four hits while striking out four batters and lowering his season ERA from 5.23 to 3.77, most expect manager Aaron Boone to name German as Sunday’s starter versus the Indians.

Following the Yankees’ resilient 4-0 victory, German, through an interpreter, told NorthJersey.com he hopes for another chance to help his team.

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"“To me, I had to be aggressive, but calm at the same time,’’ German said. “I wanted to hold the game there, give my team a chance and eventually, with the kind of lineup we have, something was going to (happen).“It gives you confidence and experience at the same time… I just look forward to the next turn.’’"

Taking the place of Monty on the 25-man roster is the recently re-acquired David Hale. Should German fail to duplicate Tuesday night’s heroics, right-handers, Hale or A.J. Cole could become viable options.

For those looking towards the minor leagues for reinforcements, Chance Adams continues to labor at Triple-A. In his last outing on April 29, Adams allowed six hits and four earned runs over six innings while striking out five and walking one.

Justus Sheffield, who I continue to tout for a promotion from Trenton to Scranton, isn’t a realistic option at this time. However, on Tuesday evening, Sheffield went six innings of no-run ball, allowing three hits, walking three and striking out six.

Hopefully, Montgomery’s DL stint is a short one. Should it fail to be, Sheffield’s continued dominance of the lower levels should be carefully monitored throughout the summer.

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With German on a smaller pitch count than most, due to his time out of the bullpen, guys like Hale and Cole will have the opportunity to carve out an all-important bullpen role for themselves.