The promotion of a top minor league prospect has not exactly been an everyday occurrence in the world of the New York Yankees, especially over the last fifteen to twenty years. The Bronx Bombers have rarely been shy about dealing the chips in their farm system for big league talent.
However, general manager Brian Cashman has gradually implemented a shift in philosophy over the past few seasons, becoming noticeably more judicious in how he values and handles his minor league assets. This new strategy became abundantly clear at this year’s trade deadline, when the Yanks decided to stand pat rather than go all-in on any of the big prizes on the market.
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That inactivity has caught some significant flack from fans, particularly in light of how white-hot the Toronto Blue Jays have been since acquiring Troy Tulowitzki and David Price. But for better or worse, Cashman chose to stick to his guns, and the true verdict will only come after seeing how his group of “untouchable” prospects pans out in the future.
One of those players didn’t have to wait very long to get his chance, as the Yankees announced shortly after the deadline on July 31 that their coveted minor league starting pitcher Luis Severino would make his next start in the majors. It marked a very quick rise for the 21-year-old, who started the year at Double-A and earned his promotion by dominating Triple-A competition to the tune of a 1.91 ERA over the course of 11 starts. With Michael Pineda having recently been placed on the disabled list, it was a move that simply made a lot of sense.
Expectations are always at a fever-pitch in Yankee Stadium and they somehow intensify even more around a highly-touted youngster, mainly because they haven’t come around so often. As far as starting pitchers go, the benchmark for hype in recent memory is Phil Hughes. He was the crown jewel of the Yankees system for some time, an intended future ace who made his debut to much fanfare in April 2007.
Though Hughes certainly had his moments in New York, he never developed into the frontline starter the club hoped he would be, as evidenced by his 4.53 ERA over seven seasons there. In a market where instant gratification rules, it served as a reminder that projecting even the most promising of prospects is extremely difficult.
Severino’s story is still in its early stages, but the Yankees and their fans can’t be anything but enthusiastic about his performance over the first five starts of his major league career. Since making his entrance on August 5 against the Red Sox, he has posted a 2.17 ERA in 29 innings, giving up 21 hits, walking 11 and striking out 29 batters in that span. He has also held opponents to a .200 average and impressed the team with his composure on the mound for a pitcher of his tender age.
His best outing to date came last Saturday at Atlanta, as he held the Braves scoreless over six frames, limiting them to four hits while striking out five on the evening. At 88 pitches thrown he likely could have gone further into the game but was pinch-hit for in the top of the seventh. Severino has offered the Yanks consistent length in his outings so far, tossing six innings in four of his five starts, the only exception being his five-inning debut. On a team that hasn’t been getting a whole lot of mileage out of its rotation lately, that has been an invaluable contribution.
If there is a weakness to identify at this juncture, it would likely have to be a somewhat elevated walk rate of 3.4 BB/9. Ten of those free passes have come in his last 18 innings as well. You also might point to the quality of opposition; of the squads Severino has faced thus far, only the Blue Jays could be said to have a particularly potent lineup. It should not be ignored, however, that he held that high-powered offense (which has been absolutely demolishing pitchers all month) to a relatively modest three runs over six innings at the Rogers Centre. Not bad for the third start of your big league lifetime.
Expectations should remain tempered, but Yankees fans keeping score at home will know that Severino has been comfortably outpacing his predecessor in Hughes. Through his own first five outings (in the middle of which, it should be noted, he was sidelined for three months with a hamstring injury), Hughes pitched to a 4.44 ERA, having surrendered 24 hits and nine walks in 26.1 frames.
For Severino, a better model of early career success might come from another Yankees farm product who generated far less hype when he made his debut in 2005. Chien-Ming Wang quietly and unexpectedly emerged as the leader of the Yanks’ staff in 2006 and 2007, winning 19 games in each of those years and finishing as Cy Young runner-up in the former. Longevity wasn’t in the cards, unfortunately: Wang was never quite the same after suffering an injury while running the bases in Houston in 2008. The Yankees will hope their newest rotation member remains healthy long-term and ends up having considerably more staying power.
The Yankees front office made a major investment in its top minor leaguers by holding onto them at the trade deadline, an investment it decided to immediately put to the test by calling up Luis Severino during a crucial part of the season. He isn’t just being given the chance to get his feet wet at the big league level; he is being asked to win important games.
The skyrocketing Jays have overtaken the Bombers in the AL East at the moment, and if the standings stay that way Brian Cashman will likely receive a fresh round of criticism at the end of the regular season for not responding to a division rival’s bold moves. But Severino’s early success (not to mention some flashes from the bat of first baseman Greg Bird) is a reminder that there is a bigger picture to consider as well.