Yankees right hander Michael Pineda is still considered the better half of the trade that sent Jesus Montero to Seattle before the 2012 season. Unfortunately for Montero, Pineda has never pitched an inning for the Yankees.
Yankees plan to hold Michael Pineda to an innings limit
New York hopes that they can limit Pineda’s innings voluntarily in 2014.
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The trade seemed like a significant deal at the time, but nothing substantial has come from it to date. The Yankees are hopeful that they can change their end of the deal by easing Pineda, who has suffered injuries that have kept him from debuting as a Yankees for two years, back into a full-time workload.
The team plans to employ an innings limit with Pineda, according to the New York Post’s Joel Sherman.
General manager Brian Cashman indicated to manager Joe Girardi that “you are not getting 200 innings out of [Pineda],” though a definite number has not been given.
Pineda, 25, has been watched closely this spring. The results are guardedly encouraging. His velocity has been clocked at 93 mph -- he average 94.7 mph in his only major league season. In 2011, he finished fifth in AL Rookie of the Year voting and made the All Star team as a 22-year-old. He posted a 3.74 ERA in 171 innings for the Mariners that season.
The Yankees will likely rely on a combination of Ivan Nova, David Phelps, and Vidal Nuno at the back end of their rotation in order to bring Pineda along slowly.
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