BALTIMORE – In an effort to avoid watching Hiroki Kuroda tire down the stretch as he did a year ago, the Yankees are skipping the veteran right-hander.
Kuroda worked Sunday against the Indians and with Tuesday night’s game rained out and Thursday dark, his next turn would have been Sunday against the Rays in St. Petersburg, Fla.
However, when the Yankees released their rotation through Sunday, Chris Capuano, who started Monday against the Orioles, was listed as Sunday’s starter.
“Joe [Girardi] told me that he wanted to give him some extra rest,’’ Brian Cashman said of the 39-year-old right-hander who is 7-8 with a 4.03 ERA in 24 starts and who the general manager said is not experiencing a physical problem.
Of the five Opening Day starters, Kuroda is the only one who hasn’t landed on the disabled list.
Girardi is likely trying to avoid Kuroda’s awful finish to last season when he was affected by fatigue. In his final eight outings last year, Kuroda was 0-6 with a 6.56 ERA and allowed 62 hits in 46 ²/₃ innings.
The Yankees will stay with Michael Pineda as Wednesday’s starter against the Orioles and push rookie right-hander Shane Greene, who was slated to start Tuesday night’s game, back until Saturday against the Rays.
Brandon McCarthy will open the three-game series against the Rays Friday night.
Wednesday night will mark the first big league game for Pineda since April 23 when he was suspended for 10 games for foolishly applying pine tar to his neck in Boston. While suspended the right-hander suffered a muscle strain behind his right shoulder. He made two minor league rehab starts for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Tuesday night’s game will be made up as part of a day-night doubleheader Sept. 12 at Camden Yards.
Free agent Rusney Castillo continues to make the private workout tour as the deadline for clubs to submit offers moves closer. The Cuban defector who the Yankees are interested in talking to worked out for the Tigers Monday and has a workout in front of Seattle scouts this week.
Castillo, who worked out for the Yankees in Tampa last Friday, wants clubs to submit offers by the end of this week.
The scouting fraternity is split on the 27-year-old. Some clubs, like the Yankees, view the 5-foot-9, 205-pounder as a second baseman; others believe he is an outfielder.
In addition to the Yankees and Tigers, Castillo has worked out privately for the Cubs, Phillies and Red Sox.
David Robertson has converted 31-of-33 save chances. Dellin Betances pushes speed guns into triple digits and makes hitters look silly when they whiff.
Yet, Adam Warren has been big piece to the Yankees’ bullpen success but lately he hasn’t been the same hurler he was in the first three months of the season.
When June ended the 26-year-old right-hander had a 2.70 ERA in 34 appearances. After giving up three runs in an inning during Monday night’s 11-3 beating by the Orioles at Camden Yards, Warren’s ERA is at 3.53.
In his last 15 games Warren has a 6.75 ERA, has given up 14 hits and seven walks in 13 ¹/₃ innings and has fanned 13.
Is the workload getting to Warren? A converted starter Warren made 32 relief appearances a year ago when he threw 77 innings. It was his first taste of bullpen work. This year he has worked 54 games and 58 ²/₃ innings.
“It goes back to executing pitches and getting ahead of hitters,’’ said Warren, who gave up two-run homer to Nelson Cruz in the seventh inning Monday. “I felt fresh [Monday]. My arm felt good.’’
“I think he had a tough night so we have to get him back going,’’ Girardi said.
Robertson’s next strikeout will be his 500th as a Yankee and will make him the fastest pitcher in franchise history to reach that mark. Robertson has 373 ²/₃ innings in pinstripes. Until Robertson’s next whiff David Cone (500 strikeouts in his first 486 ¹/₃ innings) is the quickest to get 500 strikeouts.
Wednesday’s hard rain forced Masahiro Tanaka to play catch with pitching coach Larry Rothschild in the lobby of Camden Yards.
Tanaka is progressing to the point where he can test the torn ulnar collateral ligament in the eight elbow by throwing off flat ground. The plan was for Tanaka to throw 90 pitches from 120 feet but it’s not known if the program changed because he couldn’t get outside.