TAMPA — Luis Severino is back in an all-too-familiar spot: injured.
Less than a week away from Opening Day, Severino has been shut down with a low-grade right lat strain, Aaron Boone said Saturday morning, which likely will land him on the injured list to start the season.
The Yankees were still trying to determine how long Severino would be a no-throw for — pitching coach Matt Blake estimated “in the neighborhood of 5-to-10 days-ish, subject to how he’s feeling” — which would then determine how long the right-hander might be out.
Severino missed two months last season with what was initially described as a low-grade lat strain, though this one appears to be lower down in his back, which the Yankees are hoping means a shorter absence.
“The next thing is, does he no-throw five days, is it six, seven days?” Boone said Saturday morning. “That’s what we gotta wrap our arms around. If that’s shorter, it doesn’t knock him down too long. But obviously it’s going to put him in jeopardy to start the year.”
Luis Severino has a lat strain and will likely start the season on the IL. USA TODAY SportsSunday would have been Severino’s normal day to start in what was supposed to be his final outing of the spring.
When asked on Friday when he was starting next, Severino said he did not know yet.
Blake had also said on Friday that the Yankees were considering having Severino start on his sixth day this time through, which would have been Monday.
Instead, Severino will not make another start this spring.
He last pitched on Tuesday, which was his best start in camp, giving up two runs over four innings with nine strikeouts.
But Severino first felt the tightness during his postgame arm-care routine Tuesday, according to Boone.
The tightness lingered through Friday, at which point the Yankees sent him for an MRI exam.
“That sucks for him, because I know where he’s at and how he’s looked this spring, how the ball’s coming out, the kind of condition he’s in, then on top of obviously the other things [pitching injuries] we’ve had,” Boone said. “But then you try to take a step back and hopefully believe it’s something minor that’s a short-term thing.”
In five starts this spring, Severino had a 9.00 ERA with six home runs allowed.
The Yankees’ rotation had already taken a few hits this spring — threatening to expose the shaky starting pitching depth behind it — with Frankie Montas undergoing shoulder surgery and Carlos Rodon having a forearm muscle strain.
Montas is expected to be out until August at the earliest, and Rodon is currently looking at a late-April or early-May return.
Jhony Brito pitches against the Tigers in spring training. APNow, the Yankees may need to call on the likes of Jhony Brito (starting Sunday), Randy Vasquez (who threw four scoreless innings against the Phillies on Saturday) or Yoendrys Gomez.
Boone specifically mentioned Brito when asked about a fifth starter — he is ahead of Vasquez and Gomez on the development path — though it’s possible the Yankees could fill the void by carrying an extra reliever to begin the season.
The Yankees, who do not need a fifth starter until the sixth game of the season at the latest, could also be in the trade market for a starter.
Gleyber Torres is among the candidates to be dealt from their infield depth if they find the right return.
Clarke Schmidt is now expected to start the second game for the Yankees Charles Wenzelberg / New York PostClarke Schmidt is now expected to start the second game of the regular season, followed by (in some order) Nestor Cortes and Domingo German.
In the meantime, the Yankees will be holding their breath and hoping Severino, who is playing on a $15 million team option, only misses a start or two.
His last fully healthy season came in 2018, having dealt with rotator cuff inflammation, a lat strain, Tommy John surgery, a groin strain and another lat strain in the four seasons since.
“We’ll see how it goes over the next couple days and see how he recovers,” Blake said. “But we feel like we got ahead of it. You never know with these things, so we’ll see.”







