TAMPA — The very expensive Japanese import Masahiro Tanaka’s Yankees debut will be in Canada.
When manager Joe Girardi announced that CC Sabathia would start Thursday, Hiroki Kuroda Friday and Ivan Nova Saturday, the manager was asked if it was safe to take from those assignments that the trio would work the first three games of the season next week in Houston. Girardi didn’t play it down.
“You can read, yeah,’’ Girardi said after watching Nova throw eight innings and 91 pitches for Single-A Tampa against Single-A Charleston Monday at the minor league complex.
Tanaka, who last pitched Saturday, would then likely open a three-game series against the Blue Jays in Toronto on April 4. Girardi hasn’t anointed Michael Pineda the winner of the No. 5 starter competition, but all signs point that way based on a solid spring by the right-hander who hasn’t pitched in the big leagues since 2011 due to complicated shoulder surgery.
Tanaka, who cost the Yankees a total of $175 million, will throw one more time before the Yankees end spring training Saturday, but Girardi wasn’t sure what day or whether it would be in a simulated or minor league game.
“He needs to throw one more time and we could flip-flop. Nova could throw in a minor league game,’’ said Girardi, who is giving Tanaka an extra day’s rest after the right-hander worked 5 ²/₃ innings against the Twins Saturday in which he gave up three runs, five hits, walked one and fanned six. “He had a pretty good workload the other day.’’
Early in camp, Girardi talked about the possibility of not using Kuroda and Tanaka in consecutive games because their pitching styles are similar.
“Different looks,’’ Girardi said of using Nova in between Kuroda and Tanaka.
When camp opened, Pineda was a big question mark, but in four games (three starts), the 6-foot-7, 265-pounder is 2-1 with a 1.20 ERA. He has allowed 14 hits, walked one and fanned 16 in 15 innings. And while you should never fall in love in spring training, it appears Pineda is healthy and that is enough for him to open the season as the fifth starter.
Girardi wouldn’t announce Tuesday night’s starter against the Phillies at George M. Steinbrenner Field because he hadn’t talked to the pitchers involved. David Phelps, Adam Warren and Vidal Nuño are candidates to start, but it’s possible Girardi would want to use them out of the pen in the final leg of the exhibition schedule.
With Pineda the fifth starter, Phelps, who was the slight favorite to win the final rotation spot when camp started, would land in the bullpen. And it’s also possible Warren could join him because Girardi doesn’t necessarily believe the Yankees would be better served by sending either right-hander to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to start as protection against big league injuries.
“It’s something we talked about,’’ Girardi said about sending Phelps, Warren or Nuño to Scranton to stay stretched out. “The important thing for me is taking what we feel is the 12 best guys.’’
Using Phelps and Warren in relief would strengthen an area that is viewed as a weakness. Outside of David Robertson, Shawn Kelley and Matt Thornton, there are question marks. Phelps and/or Warren, who both have big league bullpen experience, would provide Girardi with strike-throwers. Preston Claiborne, who appeared in 44 games for the Yankees last season, is in the mix, as are Dellin Betances and lefty Fred Lewis.