Get your “Hughes Rules” T-shirts ready.
Phil Hughes returns to the mound tonight after the Yankees skipped his last turn through the rotation in an effort to keep his innings total low enough to meet the limit the organization set in the offseason.
Hughes has thrown 82 1/3 innings already this season, and been extremely effective, with a 10-1 record and a 3.17 ERA. The Yankees are thrilled with his success, but also have an eye on the future of the right-hander who turned 24 last Thursday.
Hughes has not pitched since June 19 against the Mets.
“We definitely don’t want to win at the expense of somebody’s health,” Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said. “We want to win and protect our players. Our players are our assets. The health of this organization both short- and long-term is only as good as the health of our players. We want to ensure we have a bright present and a bright future.”
The question of innings limits has been hotly debated in recent years. The breakdown of the Generation K pitchers with the Mets and Kerry Wood and Mark Prior with the Cubs are the prime examples of overuse leading to injury in the eyes of those who are for innings limits. Those opposed argue a player could be heading for an injury whether he throws 20 or 200 innings.
The Yankees fall firmly on the side of watching the inning totals of their young pitchers closely. Most famously, Joba Chamberlain had the “Joba Rules” that prevented him from throwing on consecutive days when he arrived in 2007. He wound up in a difficult situation at the end of last season, when his starts were limited to four or five innings.
The Yankees want to avoid a situation like that again, which is why they decided to skip Hughes last week when an off-day allowed the rest of their starting staff to stay in rotation.
“We are being smart about this guy,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said. “We want him to be in our rotation for a long time. We believe he is a top-end starter and it’s our job to make sure we don’t overuse him.”
The Yankees also are able to rest Hughes because of the health of the rest of their staff. Had they been using two Triple-A pitchers to fill out the rotation, Hughes would not have been skipped. But the Yankees have used only six starters this season because the starting five that left spring training have been able to remain healthy.
The innings limit for Hughes is believed to be between 170 and 180 innings. It is widely believed pitchers below 25 years old should not exceed their previous innings high by 30 to avoid injury the following year.
Hughes’ career high in innings came in the minors in 2006, when he threw 146.
Cashman said the inning counts have become necessary due to players getting called to the majors earlier in the expansion era. When pitching thinned out at the majors, with more teams added to the league, minor league prospects got called on quicker.
“Just because they don’t have Scranton [the Yankees’ Triple-A team] on their chests anymore doesn’t mean they don’t have things to work on and finish off,” Cashman said. “It’s a tightrope we feel is the right way to go.”
Cashman recognizes it may not be the popular choice with fans, but the Yankees want to protect their future even if there is a cost to pay in the present.
“We’ll do what’s best for the athlete first and the asset first and foremost,” Cashman said.
Additional reporting by
George A. King III