The Yankees have found a weapon. And Big Dellin Betances has found a home in the bullpen.
Switching Betances from starter to bullpen has turned out to be a brilliant move by the Yankees.
As a starter, Betances had a problem a lot of young pitchers have — he was thinking too much. Way too much.
“He was overanxious, it almost became an anxiety thing for him as a starter,’’ one Yankees official said of Betances’ struggles.
“I was putting too much pressure on myself,’’ said Betances, who is not struggling anymore.
The local kid who starred at Brooklyn’s Grand Street Campus is not anxious anymore.
The Yankees’ thrilling 1-0 win over the Mets on Thursday night at Citi Field was proof of that as Betances (2-0) got the win.
Now opposing hitters are anxious having to face the big man, and Thursday night Betances, 26, destroyed the Mets on a night the Yankees were desperate for pitching help. He retired all seven batters he faced, striking out the last six, a career high.
“At first I was bummed,’’ Betances said of move to the bullpen last season at Triple-A. “The bullpen feels good now, all I want to do is wear the pinstripes and the grays on the road. I’m cool with that. I love being here in New York. This is my hometown.”
And his home is in the bullpen, where his comfort level is obvious.
“This game is more mental than physical,’’ Betances added. “If you can put them both together you can do some good things. I always try to inspire myself, look at inspirational quotes and keep the faith. Out of the bullpen, I can be aggressive and just follow the catcher’s game.’’
Manager Joe Girardi has growing faith in Betances and called on him with two on and two outs in the fifth inning of a 0-0 game.
“He’s continued to grow in front of us, and today, he did it without throwing a lot of pitches,’’ Girardi said. “Just a ton of strikes. I think his confidence is just going higher and higher every time he takes the mound.’’
The Mets put runners on second and third following two walks — you were expecting hits? — by emergency starter Chase Whitley and a sacrifice bunt by Mets’ starter Jacob deGrom.
Betances got Eric Young Jr. to ground to third base to end the threat.
Betances really went to work in the sixth and seventh innings with six straight strikeouts. That is two more strikeouts than he has ever had in a major league game.
Betances cut like a knife through the Subway Series cake the Mets presented Derek Jeter before the game. He struck out Daniel Murphy swinging, David Wright looking and then caught Curtis Granderson looking to end the sixth.
In the seventh, Chris Young went down swinging, Lucas Duda looking and then Betances dropped a perfect curve to freeze Ruben Tejada.
The Mets offense had nowhere to go against the 6-foot-8, 260-pound Betances.
After scoring 21 runs the first two games of the Subway Series at Yankee Stadium, the Mets were shut out in back-to-back games at Citi Field. In the two games, they produced seven hits and struck out 22 times, 14 times Thursday night.
He owns 39 strikeouts over 22¹/₃ innings. Only starters Masahiro Tanaka (66) and CC Sabathia (48) have more strikeouts on the staff. Betances’ ERA is 1.61.
This Killer B is finally killing it.
The 2006 eighth-round draft pick could close one day. But one thing is certain: This is just the start for Betances.
“You can always get better,’’ said Betances, who grew up a fan of the Subway Series. “To me it’s all about confidence.’’
“He’s got a gift,’’ Girardi said. “He’s got a very good fastball and a very good curveball. He’s not a comfortable at-bat. Where it ends up, none of us know, but he’s got good stuff.’’
Dellin Betances has become one bullpen beast.