Yankees: Projecting the Starting Rotation in Case Masahiro Tanaka Misses Time

Yankees starter Masahiro Tanaka was hit in the head with a line drive on Saturday.

Right now, all signs seem to be positive. Everyone thought the New York Yankees starting rotation was about to suffer an irreplaceable loss when Masahiro Tanaka was hit in the head with a line drive off the bat of Giancarlo Stanton during practice on Saturday.

However, the Yankees got some good news for a change. Tanaka was sent to the hospital and promptly released after being evaluated thoroughly, which is tremendous news. As of right now, from what we can gather, he should still be on track to start the season without any issue.

But we can’t be too optimistic, can we? This is the Yankees we’re talking about. The 2019 team endured the most injuries of any team in history. We can’t assume Tanaka is in the clear until we 100% know that (it’s hard to rule out potential lingering concussion issues). So what would the rotation look like in the event he’s not fully healthy to begin 2020?

That’s a good question. New York was looking to start the year with Gerrit Cole, Tanaka and James Paxton as the surefire top of the rotation, with guys like JA Happ, Jonathan Loaisiga, Jordan Montgomery, and (when he returns) Domingo German filling out the remaining two spots as manager Aaron Boone sees fit.

Let’s also not forget Chad Green was frequently used as an opener last season coupled with the fact top prospects Deivi Garcia and Clarke Schmidt were added to the 60-man player pool. The options are aplenty, however, Tanaka’s absence could send this unit into a spiral. Who’s capable of making a full season (it’s on 60 games, but it still matters) worth of starts?

Honestly, we don’t know, but if we were to take a guess, it’d look like this:

• Gerrit Cole
• James Paxton
• JA Happ
• Jonathan Loaisiga
• Jordan Montgomery/Chad Green/Domingo German

Remember, Montgomery is coming off Tommy John surgery, so it’s doubtful he’ll be used as regularly as he would be if he were completely healthy. Additionally, we have to think Boone and/or GM Brian Cashman would love to see a spot start here and there from one of the top prospects, so we could realistically toss Garcia and Schmidt into the roaming fifth spot.

It also depends how much the Yankees will value starting pitching this year in a shortened season. It’s possible Boone opts to bullpen more games than we’re accustomed to in order to make sure the relievers get ample work heading into the postseason. It wouldn’t be smart to have some of the top arms taking multiple days in a row off.

Nonetheless, there are plenty of options if Tanaka isn’t ready to go, though we hope (and think) that won’t be the case.