While Matt Harvey's continuing struggles in Queens are getting most of the headlines in New York, a similar drama involving another 27-year-old right-hander is playing out in the Bronx.
Yankees starter Michael Pineda was shelled again Saturday, allowing six runs on nine hits over 3 2/3 innings in his team's 9-5 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays. The shellacking sent his ERA skyrocketing to 6.92, the highest among qualified pitchers this season.
And yet, just like the Mets with Harvey, the Yankees sound prepared to stick it out with the young Dominican.
Manager Joe Girardi told reporters Sunday that Pineda will make his next scheduled start on Thursday in Detroit.
"We still believe in Michael," Girardi said, according to Wallace Matthew of ESPN.com. "We've seen Michael have success."
On Saturday, it was his command that did him in.
Pineda "left a lot of balls in the middle of the plate, fastballs and some breaking balls," pitching coach Larry Rothschild told Mark Feinsand of the New York Daily News postgame. Though Rothschild echoed Girardi in saying Pineda won't be dropped from the rotation, he did say that a turnaround has to come quickly.
"The last game in Oakland, he was better, but we need to get this done and hopefully in a hurry," Rothschild said. "We'd like to get him through this, but our eyes are open to what goes on. To win games, that’s the most important thing to the team."
MAY DAY: PINEDA'S ROUGH MONTH OF MAY
| W-L | ERA | H | HR | Opp. BA |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2-3 | 7.52 | 38 | 4 | .339 |
With Luis Severino still injured and thin depth in the rotation, the Yankees need Pineda to find himself quickly if they have any hope of getting back in a pennant race. Girardi knows what the good Michael Pineda looks like, as evidenced by his 1.89 ERA over 13 starts in 2013. How to bring that version of the 27-year-old back to the mound, though, is something that has the manager still scratching his head.
"We've seen Michael be really good," Girardi said, according to Erik Boland of Newsday Sports. "It's in there, we just have to get it out."