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New York Yankees’ fifth starter competition not much of a race at all

By Tim Haberin |
Mar 29, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher CC Sabathia (52) pitches during warmups before the first inning of a spring training baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 29, 2016; Tampa, FL, USA; New York Yankees starting pitcher CC Sabathia (52) pitches during warmups before the first inning of a spring training baseball game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at George M. Steinbrenner Field. Mandatory Credit: Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports

The New York Yankees are going with CC Sabathia as their fifth starter, making his spring competition with Ivan Nova look like somewhat of a farce.

Yesterday the New York Yankees answered one of their last remaining questions before the start of the 2016 season by officially naming CC Sabathia as their fifth starter. To anyone following the team on a regular basis, this shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.

The club entered Spring Training claiming that the fifth spot in the rotation would be decided by an open competition between Sabathia and Ivan Nova. While neither pitcher is exactly a hot commodity at the moment, the Yanks insisted they were taking a pure “may the best man win” approach to filling out their staff.

This strategy was somewhat eyebrow-raising coming from a regime that has consistently shown a preference for its veterans over the years. In particular, they have given Sabathia countless opportunities to succeed in recent seasons in spite of his rapidly deteriorating abilities.

Despite general manager Brian Cashman’s assertion that choosing CC had “nothing, zero” to do with his hefty contract (the lefty is due to make $25 million this year), it’s hard to buy that statement in light of the evidence at hand.

Nova’s spring numbers aren’t much to write home about, but they are solid enough for an arm at the back-end of the rotation. In 24 innings, he allowed 11 earned runs (4.13 ERA) on 20 hits while striking out 15. Sabathia, on the other hand, put up a 5.51 ERA in 16.1 frames, surrendering ten earned runs on 20 hits, walking seven and fanning ten.

Sabathia’s struggles both on and off the field have been much publicized over the past few years. Since the beginning of the 2013 campaign, the big southpaw has sputtered to an uncharacteristic 4.81 ERA and 1.40 WHIP in 69 total starts.

That’s a far cry from the elite production the Yanks received from Sabathia earlier in his tenure with the club. From 2009 to 2012, CC posted a 74-29 record along with a 3.22 ERA (135 ERA+), 1.18 WHIP and 3.34 K/BB ratio. He finished in the top-five in Cy Young voting in the first three of those seasons.

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The main reasons for Sabathia’s sudden decline? Injuries have played their part. He was limited to only eight outings in 2014 due to right knee inflammation, an issue that has continued to trouble him even after his return. He has also experienced a notable drop in velocity. His fastball, which sat comfortably at around 94-95 mph not long ago, averaged just over 90 mph last season. Sabathia has been hard-pressed to retire hitters with his diminished stuff.

The latter part of 2015 offered some hope, however. From the beginning of August, Sabathia managed a 2.86 ERA over his final nine starts. The rejuvenation coincided with his use of a knee brace while pitching, leading some to ponder whether the new apparatus was making a difference. This surprising run was cut short, of course, when Sabathia sought treatment for alcohol abuse just before the postseason.

Nova has faced obstacles of his own, undergoing Tommy John surgery in 2014 that abbreviated his campaign that year to only four starts. He returned last season to make 17 outings and visibly struggled to re-establish himself, posting a 5.07 ERA in 94 innings.

At 29, Nova is hardly a youngster anymore, but he is nearly seven years Sabathia’s junior. Neither are particularly attractive options for the long-term, but you would have to peg Nova as the better bet to rebound in 2016. And what we’ve seen in Spring Training seems to bear that out.

Going with Sabathia in the rotation suggests that the open competition wasn’t much of a competition to begin with. The Yankees were always going to give CC one last shot to make good on that $25 million price tag. However, the team really should have started viewing that number as a sunk cost years ago, and instead made decisions based on what gave them the best chance to win ballgames.

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For what it’s worth, Cashman stated that Sabathia is the club’s fifth starter “for now,” meaning if his woes continue, Nova (or someone else) could get an opportunity to take over. But in the meantime, that Yankees and their fans will need to once again cross their fingers and hope their former ace rediscovers his effectiveness.

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