With Apologetic Tanaka Out of Action, the Yankees Search For Help
By Charles Jay
Has there ever been a baseball player as gentlemanly as Masahiro Tanaka? The Japanese import on whom the New York Yankees spent $155 million suffered a tear in his right ulnar collateral ligament, which is something that, well, can happen to a pitchers every so often, and he apologized to the team for getting hurt. “I want to apologize to the Yankee organization, my teammates and our fans for not being able to help during this time,” he said in a statement. “I promise to do everything I can to overcome this setback and return tot he mound as soon as possible.”
Now the Yankees, who are fearful of losing him for as much as a year and half, are going to try to make it up to him.
And themselves too.
As VietBet customers know, when a pitcher sustains such an injury, It is known to be effective in many cases, but it is also likely to keep a pitcher out of action for a year to 18 months.
The Yankees, who are currently priced at +2200 to win the World Series in the latest baseball betting odds, are looking at an alternative approach, which involves injecting plasma into the elbow, taken from Tanaka’s own blood, and going through a rehabilitation program. The most optimistic estimates are that he could be back after six weeks, but if he experiences difficulty during the early period when he starts throwing again, it may be time to stop and get the Tommy John procedure. At the All-Star Game, this was explained to him, and to the press, by Baltimore Orioles catcher Matt Wieters, who underwent the same operation.
The plan had been for Tanaka to make a start on Sunday, then sort of take a bow in the All-Star Game introductions but not to pitch. That plan got short-circuited. Tanaka currently is tied for the major league lead with twelve victories, and also has a 2.55 ERA.
This team has endured an awful ordeal in which four-fifths of the starting rotation is now out. CC Sabathia thought he was coming back after the All-Star break but in a minor league rehab start his knee experienced swelling and he is probably shelved for the season. Ivan Nova had Tommy John surgery, and VietBet patrons can forget about him for a while. Michael Pineda looked pretty good (notwithstanding that pine tar incident against Boston) until developing a back problem, but the Yankees are hoping he can return within a month. And now Tanaka is unavailable.
The Yankees, who are +1075 to win the AL pennant, in the baseball betting odds, aren’t going to do what they want to do with a rotation that includes the likes of Hiroki Kuroda, Chase Whitley, Shane Greene and Brandon McCarthy. They need help, and that is why they are thought to be a possible destination for 2012 Cy Young winner David Price, who leads the majors in strikeouts. Tampa Bay would have to get past the fact that the Yankees are in their division, but maybe New York can make it worth their while, and then some. It would take Hank Steinbrenner taking a page out of his father’s book, in terms of forsaking the future for a shot at doing something now.
Meanwhile, the very idea that with all these injuries, the Yankees can stay within five games of the Orioles (who are +900 to win the AL at VietBet) in the AL East should make Joe Girardi a legitimate candidate for the manager of the year award. Do you remember what he was able to do with a bunch of kids in Miami in 2006, guiding them to 78 victories and winning the NL Manager of the Year award before getting fired over a personality conflict? Well, he’s showing those kinds of chops once again.
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