On Monday night the Yankees opened a four-game series against the Detroit Tigers as Brandon McCarthy faced off against last year's AL Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer. Not only did the Yanks pull off a 2-1 victory, but they also received good news about injured pitcher Masahiro Tanaka.
In the series' remaining three games, New York will face David Price, Justin Verlander and Rick Porcello. The first three games of the series feature three former Cy Young Award winners in the Tigers' rotation. That didn't seem to intimidate Brandon McCarthy last night as he threw 5 2/3 innings and gave up five hits and one run, earning his fourth victory in five starts with the Yankees.
New York capitalized in the third inning after Ichiro, Gardner and Jeter delivered three singles to start it off. Jacoby Ellsbury then hit a shot to center field, but Tigers' Ezequiel Carrera made a full-extension diving catch at the warning track, only allowing Ichiro to score. Brian McCann then singled to right field with two outs and drove in Gardner for the 2-0 lead. The Tigers got one back off of McCarthy in the fifth, but the Yankees bullpen did a great job of preserving the lead.
However, the performance of McCarthy since being traded to New York has been the big story. In 18 starts with the Arizona Diamondbacks, McCarthy amassed a 3-10 record with a 5.01 ERA. Perhaps a change of scenery is all the starter needed. The Yankees acquired McCarthy on July 6 for left-handed pitcher Vidal Nuno, and in five starts with New York he is 4-0 with a 2.08 ERA with wins over the Reds, Rangers (twice), and Tigers. In his first start with the Yankees he faced the Cleveland Indians, but received a no-decision after surrendering four runs (three unearned) in 6 2/3 innings.
New York also might be getting back Masahiro Tanaka just in time for the late-season push toward the postseason. Yesterday the former Japanese star played catch as a part of rehabbing his partially torn ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) in his pitching elbow. He threw a baseball 25 times, including from a distance of 60 feet, telling reporters that he felt 'good' and that he thinks it 'went well.' Doctors suggested Tanaka try and rehab the small UCL tear in an attempt to avoid Tommy John surgery, which would have kept him out for the remainder of 2014 and the entire 2015 season. Either way, if he needs the procedure, he'll be kept out all of next year, so the doctors think it's worth a shot to try rehab.
If Tanaka's remaining rehabilitation goes well, the Yankees may get him back in September, which would be great news for a pitching rotation that has only one remaining starter from opening day - Hiroki Kuroda. Since then, CC Sabathia and Ivan Nova have been lost for the year, Michael Pineda has been out since May 6 (after only four starts), and Tanaka hurt his elbow in the beginning of July. New York needs a big push to catch the Orioles, who lead the division by five games. They're only one game back in the wild card race behind the Toronto Blue Jays and have 51 games to gain some ground.
