Yankees need to move on from Luis Severino at any cost after Orioles' shelling

It's one thing to be a middling talent. It's another thing to constantly put your team in a position to unequivocally lose. Luis Severino went from All-Star pitcher to abject liability, and there's no reason for the New York Yankees to continue on with this relationship.

We've talked ad nauseam about the Yankees making a gigantic mistake by not trading the right-hander in the offseason after picking up his $15 million team option, but his start against the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday night should officially seal his fate in the Bronx.

The Yankees are down bad as it is. They continue to lose players to injury without pause. Aaron Judge's injury updates are as nebulous as it gets. They can't afford to have somebody on the roster that's as important as a starting pitcher constantly putting them in a hole every fifth day.

After Severino's first two starts of the year, both of which were wins for the Yankees and promising in regard to his progress as he returned from an oblique injury, the right-hander has been a disaster -- worse than any other consistent starter this team has had in a decade.

And we hate to tell you, but the Yankees' roster move on Thursday told us everything we needed to know. They didn't trust Sevy to perform. And they were right. He was yanked after 2.2 innings. He allowed seven earned runs on 10 hits and a walk. His body language telegraphed the entire performance.

Yankees need to move on from Luis Severino at any cost after Orioles game

Forget sending Severino to Triple-A. What use will that do? He's in a contract year and there's a 0% chance he's back in pinstripes come 2024 -- that would've been the case even if he had a good season. These two parties needed each other for the 2023 campaign to get to where they wanted to be, and we're witnessing the absolute worst-case scenario.

If the Yankees hadn't learned from his incessant injury troubles, then they have to act upon his detrimental play. Severino has been counted on to provide top-of-the-rotation production since 2019. Last year was his best showing since 2018, and he still only made 19 starts (3.18 ERA, 1.00 WHIP). He's pitched in just 35 games over the last five seasons and four of them were relief appearances.

Now, in his age-29 season, he's struggling with his mechanics. He can't overcome the countless mental roadblocks that have seemingly held him back ever since he went down with an injury that spiraled his career in 2019.

And how about that stat? Sabathia at least finished that season with 211 innings pitched. He made 32 starts and logged a 4.78 ERA, 4.10 FIP and 1.37 WHIP. At this point, we'd kill for that to be Sevy's finale line on the year. Severino has just two seasons where he's eclipsed 101 innings. His career high is 193.1. His leash should be next to nonexistent at this point.

The Yankees are getting Carlos Rodón back on Friday. Nestor Cortes is on the mend after logging a bullpen session for the first time since suffering a shoulder injury. Clarke Schmidt and Domingo German have earned their spots in the rotation. Even Randy Vasquez has a better case than Severino.

Severino should be gone once the Yankees feel out Rodón's first outing since his forearm/back injuries sidelined him back in March. They have enough arms to weather the storm as they wait for others on the mend. Severino has long been a headache, but we're now experiencing a blinding migraine. The money was always a waste, so cutting it loose won't impact anything other than removing dead weight from the most important area of the roster.