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Yankees: Why they can still win it all without trading for another starting pitcher

By Mac Josephson

NEW YORK, NY - MAY 10: CC Sabathia #52 of the New York Yankees pitches in the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium on May 10, 2018 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NY - MAY 10: CC Sabathia #52 of the New York Yankees pitches in the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium on May 10, 2018 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /
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NEW YORK, NY – JUNE 15: Jonathan Loaisiga #38 of the New York Yankees pitches in his MLB debut against the Tampa Bay Rays in the first inning at Yankee Stadium on June 15, 2018 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Mike Stobe/Getty Images) /

While the Yankees continue to win much of the talk surrounding the team these days is still about their need for another starting pitcher. That may be true, but this team is still good enough to win a championship with what they have right now.

This is probably an unpopular opinion, but it might not be such a bad thing if the Yankees ended up standing pat and didn’t make a move for another starting pitcher before the trade deadline. On paper, sure they could use the help because you can never have too much starting pitching. However, this is a starting staff that collectively has performed better than they’ve been given credit for so far this season and they can only get better.

Jordan Montgomery is out for the year and Masahiro Tanaka is still on the DL, but in their absence, the Yankees have quietly gotten some really solid performances from their rotation of late.

Domingo German, in particular, continues to improve with each passing start and he’s really pitched better than his 5.23 ERA might dictate. Over his last two starts, he’s registered a 9 strikeout game and a 10 strikeout game, showcasing some electric stuff. His ability to cause swings and misses were on full display in Thursday’s outing against the Rays when he forced 26 of them which was a high for a Yankees starter this season. He’s also striking out 10.6 batters per 9 innings which are only second to Luis Severino at 10.7.

Fellow rookie Jonathan Loaisiga was just as impressive in his major league debut on Friday and could be an X-Factor for this team as the season progresses. It’s only one start to judge him off of but it was over five scoreless innings with six strikeouts. The 23-year old looked very composed after being called up all the way from Double-A and showcased an upper 90’s fastball with a good feel for his slider and changeup. His stay might not last long with Tanaka expected to back sometime before the All-Star break but he deserves a long look until that happens.

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