Much of how well the New York Yankees perform this season is tied into the health of stud Japanese pitcher Masahiro Tanaka, who missed nearly three months in 2014 because of a torn ligament in his elbow. Tanaka opted for rehab opposed to surgery, and while the choice worked out for the Yankees in the short-term, surgery could be in his future in the long-term.
Pedro Martinez, now an analyst for MLB Network, thinks Tanaka is pitching hurt and that surgery will come sooner rather than later.
Here are the relevant quotes from Sirius/XM, via ESPN New York.
“I don’t see him healthy all year,” Martinez told Adam Schein on Sirius/XM’s Mad Dog Radio. “And I don’t see him healthy right now. I’ll be brave enough to say he’s not completely healthy right now.”
[…]
“Tanaka is not healthy right now because I believe Tanaka is hesitant to let it go,” said Martinez, an analyst for TBS and MLB Network. “Tanaka is hanging all those breaking balls that he is throwing.
“The only pitch he is committing to is the split finger and his problems are actually in a place where you don’t need to put any more stress, which is the elbow. And he’s hesitant. He’s hesitating to throw his fastball and he’s hanging every breaking ball he’s throwing out there. Plus his velocity is not there yet.”
Just by glancing at Tanaka’s stat line this spring, you might question Martinez’s comments. After all, Tanaka has struck out 13 and walked just one over 14 2/3 innings, allowing six runs (five earned) on 13 hits. But you can’t scout stat lines (especially in Spring Training), and Tanaka didn’t exactly look fantastic while striking out seven Mets last week. Look at the (admittedly sketchy) velocity numbers during these at bats.
Maybe Tanaka’s decision to opt for rehab over surgery will pay off in the long run for the Yankees. But when most players partially tear an elbow ligament, a full tear and Tommy John surgery usually follows soon thereafter. But if the 26-year old aggravates that injury and needs surgery later this year, the Yankees won’t be in good shape during both 2015 and 2016.
