Following last night’s loss to the Tampa Bay Rays, New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi revealed the club’s plan for their 2011 playoff rotation. While it was a given that C.C. Sabathia would be starting game one of the ALDS, the rest of the rotation situation was fairly murky.
Girardi confirmed what many had believed leading up to the final game of the regular season; Ivan Nova will indeed start the Yankees second playoff game. The three game rotation will then be filled out by veteran right-hander Freddy Garcia.
News regarding Nova didn’t catch anyone off guard, but Garcia’s placement in the Yankees playoff rotation will have a bit of a ripple effect. Garcia’s presence means that $82.5 million man A.J. Burnett will head to the bullpen.
The development means that the Yankees will head into their first playoff series with neither Burnett or Phil Hughes in their postseason rotation, pitchers that began the season considered the club’s number two and three starters. Hughes, who was notified earlier in the week of his bullpen assignment, struggled with inconsistency and injury throughout the season.
Game two will be Nova’s first playoff appearance. The right-hander earned his spot in the Yankees playoff rotation with his strong finish to the 2011 season.
Since June 10th, Nova has won his last 12 decisions. Over that span, Nova maintained an ERA of 3.26. The 24-year-old finished the season logging at least seven innings in five of his last seven starts.
Garcia falls on the other end of the experience spectrum. Entering the 2011 season, Garcia had more postseason starts (nine) than Nova’s Major League total (seven). The 34-year-old is probably best remembered for the gem he delivered for the Chicago White Sox in their deciding game four victory over the Houston Astros during 2005 World Series.
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