After contentious discussions, the MLB lockout is over and teams have begun their spring training schedules. Opening Day has been pushed to April 14, which gives teams some extra time to finalize their rosters and rotations. In this series, TGH will be summarizing each team’s 2021 season and predicting their Opening Day pitching rotation. Here is the projected New York Yankees pitching rotation for 2022.
Summary
The Yankees finished with an identical records to their bitter rivals, the Boston Red Sox, at 92-70. This earned them a Wild Card berth, but just barely as both Boston and New York finished just one game above the Toronto Blue Jays.
New York went on to lose to the fourth-seeded Red Sox in a one game Wild Card round. They were eliminated in their first playoff round for the fifth consecutive time. Here is a look at the pitching rotation they will roll out to help break that streak.
1. Gerrit Cole
Cole is a four-time All Star, earning his fourth trip last season. He also finished second in the American League Cy Young Award voting, and was 15th in MVP voting. He led the AL in wins, with 16, and earned an ERA of 3.23 over 181 innings pitched.
2. Luis Severino
Severino has pitched only 18 total innings in the past three seasons. 12 in 2019, zero in 2020 and just 6 in 2021. However, he was an All Star 2017 and 2018, along with finishing in the top-10 in Cy Young Award voting. There is reason to believe he can be the pitcher once was, but it may take some time for him to arrive there.
3. Jordan Montgomery
Montgomery finished below .500, with a win-loss record of 6-7 in 30 starts. That gives him a whopping 17 no decisions in 2021. His ERA, though was respectable at 3.83 in 157 innings pitched. These were some of the best numbers of his career, earning him another starting role.
4. Jameson Taillon
In 2021, Taillon began his Yankees career with 29 total starts, going 8-6. His ERA was the second-worst of his career, at 4.30 over 144 innings. His relative consistency as a starter, though, is enough to land him in the fourth slot.
5. Nestor Cortes
Cortes is on his second stint with the Yankees, and this will be the first time in his career playing for the same team in back-to-back years. He pitched 92 innings last season, earning a 2.90 ERA. He played in 22 games, but started in only 14.
Featured image courtesy of Jim McIsaac/Getty Images
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