2/24/2020

7:53 PM

When will the injuries stop for the New York Yankees? I want them to stop, so I don’t have to deal with every Yankees fan using the excuse “everyone was hurt that why we didn’t make it to the World Series.” However, here we are, the Evil Empire is already dealing with injuries to four key contributors to the upcoming season. The big problem here is three of them are part of their starting rotation. Luis Severino, James Paxton, and Masahiro Tanaka are all deal with respective injuries from there past, Aaron Judge is the fourth dealing with another shoulder injury. Let’s take a look at what’s wrong, individually with each.

Luis Severino: Forearm Tightness/Elbow Inflammation
Sevy was shut down early last week with elbow/forearm tightness, which he acknowledged has dated back to his previous start against the Astros in the postseason. Now Sevy took precautions this offseason undergoing multiple scans of the elbow, and they came back clean, this is very worrisome considering he just signed an extension (4/40 mill). He was penciled into the number two spot behind mega free agent acquisition Gerrit Cole. Now obviously I’m not a doctor(even though I went to college for as long as some) I do understand that forearm tightness can lead to a torn or partially torn UCL which would require Tommy John surgery. Of the four, his status is the most concerning and one that needs to be watched throughout spring training.

Masahiro Tanaka: Partial UCL Tear
Speaking of the ol’ UCL and a Yankee, you have to mention Masahiro Tanaka. Tanaka has had a partial UCL tear since 2014, so this isn’t a new injury and something that should be monitored but tamper the level of concern. I’ve always told people Tanaka’s elbow is a ticking time bomb, and every year I’ve been wrong. For right now, I’d say Tanaka is the surest thing to have a healthy season of the four.

James Paxton: Back Surgery
Paxton underwent back surgery before spring training started for a Microdiscectomy, the oft-injured Paxton is likely out until sometime between June and July. Paxton has never had a season with more than 160 innings pitched. He will pretty much act as an in-house mid-season acquisition, assuming he fully recovers it’s adding an ace without giving up anything.

Aaron Judge: Shoulder Soreness
Judge has been dealing with a naggy shoulder injury; fortunately, it’s his left shoulder and not his surgically repaired right shoulder (breath the sigh of relief if you’re a Yankees fan.) Judge isn’t new to injuries; he missed two full months last season with a left oblique injury letting him participate in 102 games last year; he also had a broken wrist in 2018, which limited him to 112. Judge has begun to ramp up the activity of late, and he like Tanaka I expect in the Opening Day lineup when the season rolls around.

Final Take:
I still have the Yanks winning the AL East and winning the Pennate(Ugh fuck those words in the same sentence), there’s way too much star power on this roster to not overcome these early injuries. Bringing in a Gerrit Cole is enormous, and now that new addition is even more magnified with three starting pitchers slowed early on in 2020. The offense and bullpen will have to carry this team until they get back to full