On Sunday, New York Yankees fans will finally have something to look forward to other than yet another surprisingly moving Derek Jeter commercial as rookie phenom Masahiro Tanaka will be making his first start -- against the Toronto Blue Jays -- since July 8th .
MLB Sunday viewing guide: Masahiro Tanaka returns against Blue Jays
The cheers for Masahiro Tanaka at Yankee Stadium will not be of the “Bronx” variety, as he hopes to see whether Tommy John surgery is necessary in a truncated start against the Jays.
Brian Blanco
After spending three months sidelined with a slight tear in the ulnar collateral ligament of his right elbow, the 25-year-old Japanese import will be testing the waters to see if he'll need season-ending Tommy John surgery. Tanaka, who was on pace to run away with the AL Rookie of the Year vote and make serious noise in the Cy Young award race before his injury, will be limited to 70-75 pitches for the start according to MLB.com. With surgery still a serious possibility, whatever risk being taken is a calculated one.
As Yankees manager Joe Girardi told the Newark Star Ledger’s Brendan Kuty, “We feel that if his arm is going to be OK, it’s going to be OK. And if it’s not, we want (Tanaka to have surgery) so that you don’t miss parts of two seasons.”
Tanaka is 12-4 with a 2.51 ERA in 18 starts this season, with 135 strikeouts and just 19 walks in 129⅓ innings.
If the start goes well, he'll pitch again next Saturday against the Boston Red Sox.
Sunday's MLB schedule
Time (ET) | Game | TV | Reason to watch |
1:05 p.m. | Blue Jays at Yankees | Rogers SportsNet, YES | Masahiro Tanaka makes his (hopefully) triumphant return from an elbow injury. |
1:10 p.m. | MASN2, Fox Sports Florida | Stephen Strasburg hasn't been lights out this season, but he's still worth watching. | |
1:35 p.m | Red Sox at Orioles | NESN, MASN | WWJKD? |
1:35 p.m. | SNY, Fox Sports South | Wunderkind Jacob deGrom had a season-high 13 strikeouts in his last outing. | |
1:35 p.m. | Fox Sports Wisconsin, ROOT Pittsburgh | After helping the Dodgers clinch a playoff spot, the Pirates hope to contribute to their own cause again tonight. | |
1:40 p.m. | WGN, SUN | Nathan Karns first start this season couldn't have went much better, and he'll have a great chance to keep it going against the White Sox. | |
2:10 p.m. | Fox Sports Detroit, Fox Sports KC, TBS | Can the Tigers put the last nail in the Royals' AL Central coffin? | |
2:10 p.m. | Sports Time Ohio, Fox Sports North | Corey Kluber: Cleveland's best-kept secret. | |
2:10 p.m. | ROOT Northwest, CSN Houston | Seattle rolls out another solid starter as they fight for the final AL Wild Card spot. | |
2:20 p.m. | Dodgers at Cubs | SportsNet LA, Comcast Sports Chicago | Solid Dodgers starters may not grow on trees, but the money they pay them with does. |
3:35 p.m. | Fox Sports West, Fox Sports Southwest | The very best team in baseball + the very worst + Mike Trout = a lot of fun/runs. | |
4:05 p.m. | Phillies at A's | Comcast Sports Philly, CS California | Today, it's Scott Kazmir's turn to play the role of "boy with his finger in the dam" for the A's. |
4:10 p.m. | Comcast Bay Area, FS San Dieg | In order to keep their slim hopes for a division title alive, the Giants will be bringing their A-game to Petco Park. | |
4:10 p.m. | Fox Sports Arizona, ROOT Rocky Mountain | No one wants to finish last, and with the Rockies just a game up on the D-Backs for fourth in the NL West, this should be surprisingly intense. | |
8:05 p.m. | ESPN | An excellent pitching matchup, with the Reds desperate to play the role of spoiler, all on national television? Yes, please. |
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