Monday’s Yankees washout could have one lingering effect for the team. Starting pitcher Masahiro Tanaka now must make his first two starts with just four days between them instead of the five the Yankees prefer for him to rest.
Tanaka, who was the scheduled starter Monday, will pitch Tuesday against the Astros and then again on Sunday night against the Tigers. After watching Tanaka deal with elbow, forearm and wrist injuries over the past two years, the Yankees like to give him an extra day between starts. If the game had been played Monday, Tanaka’s first four starts would have been on extra rest because of the way the Yankees’ schedule unfolds.
Yankees manager Joe Girardi downplayed any concern over Tanaka pitching on regular rest.
“He’s going to have to do it,” Girardi said. “It’s part of our schedule. It’s part of what we have to deal with, so he’s going to have to do it.”
The 27-year-old Tanaka has had plenty of issues since the team gave him a $155 million contract following the 2013 season. A partial tear of an elbow ligament in 2014 along with a strained forearm and wrist tendinitis last year have left the Yankees’ brass cautious with their Opening Day starter.
Last season, Tanaka made just four starts after the traditional four days of rest. He made 14 after five days and five after six days or more.
Another reason to have concern over Tanaka starting the season this way is the weather. The forecast calls for 37 degrees on Tuesday afternoon in the Bronx. The forecast in Detroit is for a high of 50 degrees Sunday, but that game is at night, so it should be considerably cooler.
Girardi was asked if he would consider starting Ivan Nova, who is opening the year in the bullpen but started all spring, in Detroit instead.
“That’s just way too far down the line. I haven’t really thought about that,” Girardi said. “Like I said, I’d like to get through these three days and see where we’re at. You’re asking a hypothetical, which I’m not a big fan of, as everyone knows. Who knows? We might need Nova. You might need him for four or five innings on Wednesday, Thursday or something. To think that far ahead doesn’t really make any sense.”
