Yankees need Jonathan Loaisiga to step up NOW

With Luis Severino shut down indefinitely, James Paxton out until at least May, and Domingo German suspended for the first 63 games of the season; the Yankees need Jonathan Loaisiga to live up to his potential.

Two years ago, right-hander, Jonathan Loaisiga, was the Yankees No. 2 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline. Since then, the Nicaragua native has only tossed a total of 56.1 major league innings across 24 appearances due to injury.

Trips to the IL have been a part of Loaisiga’s journey since he first signed with the Giants back in 2012. A promising debut in 2013 (8-1 with a 2.75 ERA in 68.2 innings) was cut short, as Loaisiga would miss all of the next two seasons battling a list of maladies.

In 2016, the Yankees signed the hard-throwing right-hander, but after just one start for Low-A Charleston, it was determined that Loaisiga needed Tommy John surgery.

He returned to the mound in 2017, and in 11 minor league starts, showed that his three-pitch arsenal (fastball, curve, changeup) was worthy of his inclusion on the Yanks’ 40-man roster.

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The following May, Loaisiga got his first taste of the bigs, filling in for an injured Masahiro Tanaka. After throwing scoreless ball in two of his first three starts, Loaisiga came down with shoulder inflammation after his fourth outing — and his season was finished.

Last year produced much of the same for the uber-talented, albeit consistently hurt Loaisiga. Following some mediocre performances, he was placed on the 60-day IL with a shoulder strain. Although Loaisiga would return towards the end of the regular season, much of his shine had dulled, with his future as a starter now in question.

However, with spring training just arriving, and the Yanks already being without the services of James Paxton, Luis Severino, and Domingo German for the foreseeable future, Loaisiga will get another opportunity to make the team’s Opening Day roster.

With a slew of talented but unproven prospects battling it out for the final two spots in the starting rotation, Loaisiga has as good a chance as any to claim one.

During his first spring appearance on Sunday versus the Rays, Loaisiga retired all three batters he faced (14 pitches) while striking out one. Hardly much to hang his hat on, it’s a positive sign that the 25-year-old can build on as the calendar rolls over to March.

Although Loaisiga does have one minor league option remaining, his brief experience in the bigs could be an advantage to making the final 26. However, he’ll not only need to stay healthy — but continue to miss bats, as he’s added a new slider to the repertoire.

Prior to the Yankees’ 9-7 loss, manager Aaron Boone spoke to Brendan Kuty of NJ.com, as to whether Loasiga is better suited for the bullpen or rotation.

“He’s physically really gifted,” Boone said before the game. “We’ll just see. We’ll build him up a little bit. Then, based on need and where he’s at and where other guys are at, I could see him being that dynamic two- or one-time through the order guy out of the bullpen. You could see a scenario where he makes some starts. We’re not at that point where we’re decided on that yet. We just kind of build him up and hopefully he’s in a good position to make a difficult decision.”