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New York Yankees: With Sabathia out for a month, who needs to step up?

By Matthew Travis

Jun 7, 2017; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher CC Sabathia (52) throws the ball against the Boston Red Sox during the second inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Jun 7, 2017; Bronx, NY, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher CC Sabathia (52) throws the ball against the Boston Red Sox during the second inning at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports /
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Yesterday it was announced that CC Sabathia was diagnosed with a grade 2 left hamstring strain. This means that Sabathia will miss at least 4 weeks. With Sabathia being one of the best pitchers in the rotation, what does this mean for the team in the next month and who needs to step up?

CC Sabathia has undergone a resurgence this season, boasting numbers we haven’t seen out of him since the 2012 season. Through 13 starts Sabathia has pitched 75.1 innings with a 3.46 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP.

These numbers have made Sabathia one of the better pitchers in the Yankees rotation behind a struggling Masahiro Tanaka.

With Sabathia out about a month or so, the Yankees are going to have to call someone up in order to fill the hole he will leave.

The Yankees best options would be Justus Sheffield and Chance Adams who are just about ready to come up to the big leagues.

If the Yankees are looking for a direct replacement for Sabathia they will most likely call up Justus Sheffield as he like Sabathia, is a lefty.

The Yankees got Sheffield alongside Clint Frazier from the Indians when they traded Andrew Miller away to the AL Champs. Sheffield is 5’11”  200 lbs and boasts a fastball, slider and change-up. So far this season with AA Trenton, Sheffield has a 3.29 ERA, 1.38 WHIP and 61 strikeouts.

Although he is in AA Trenton and not AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Sheffield is still a viable option for the next month while Sabathia recovers.

According to MLB.com’s rankings of the Yankees prospects Sheffield is the number six ranked prospect, moving up since starting the season at number seven. Sheffield’s strongest pitch is his fastball which is normally in the 92-94 MPH range, but can reach 96.

If he can figure out how to get his pitches under control he has a chance to be a very good

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replacement for Sabathia.

The Yankees can, however, go in another direction and call up a righty in Chance Adams.

Chance Adams may be the better option as he is pitching against stronger competition with the Rail-Riders. Although he is in AAA as opposed to Sheffield who is in AA, Adams is still ranked below Sheffield in MLB.com’s player rankings.

Adams is a 6’1″ 210 lb right hander with a fastball, slider, curveball, and change-up. Adams started in Trenton, but after starting 4-0 with a 1.03 ERA and 32 strikeouts, he was quickly moved up to AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Adams’ fastball averages right around 94 MPH similar to Sheffield. His slider is in the mid 80s giving him a decent put-away pitch alongside his curveball, and change-up.

If the Yankees are looking for the player with the best chance to do well, Adams is their guy.

Adams is more used to higher competition as he has played with AAA Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for a majority of the season. If they’re looking for someone most similar to Sabathia then Sheffield is

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their guy. The reason for this is Sheffield is a left-hander just like Sabathia while Adams is a righty.

With Sabathia out Tanaka will have a little bit longer to prove he can get back to where he was in previous seasons. Tanaka has been struggling to say the least this year with a 6.07 ERA and 1.44 WHIP.

Tanaka’s start this week was pushed back after a lot of criticism from the outside calling for the Yankees to do something with him.

In order for the Yankees to keep the pace they’re on without Sabathia, Tanaka is going to need to step up and Pineda is going to have to be more consistent.

Consistency has been a major problem for Pineda this season and he’s gonna have to be a lot more consistent in order for the Yankees to keep up in the AL East with the Orioles right on their tails.

If Tanaka is unable to step up then the Yankees will almost certainly slip in the east. Sabathia has been one of the best pitchers not only with the Yankees but in the American League this season. While moderately inconsistent, Sabathia has continued to give solid starts giving the Yanks a chance to win each and every game. It will be a tough month without Sabathia and Tanaka, Montgomery, Pineda and Severino are going to have to step up in a big way.

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