The New York Yankees are battling the Toronto Blue Jays for an American League East crown this season, but they must do so without pitcher Nathan Eovaldi for at least the next two weeks thanks to elbow issues.
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Eovaldi Diagnosed with Elbow Inflammation
Monday, Sept. 7
The hope in New York was Eovaldi’s elbow wouldn’t be a long-term concern, but the team’s public relations department confirmed the pitcher “was evaluated by Dr. Ahmad and underwent an MRI, revealing right elbow inflammation. He will be shut down for two weeks.”
Although Eovaldi is fresh off a losing effort Saturday against the Tampa Bay Rays, when he pitched 5.1 innings and allowed three earned runs, he still boasts a 14-3 record with a 4.20 ERA, 1.45 WHIP and 121 strikeouts. No other pitcher on the Yankees has more than 11 wins, so they will surely miss him in the rotation.
It is important to note that Eovaldi’s 154.1 innings this season are the most he has pitched in one year in his entire career except for 2014, when threw 199.2 with the Miami Marlins. That is a heavy workload on an elbow the past two seasons that never threw more than 119.1 innings in a single campaign before last year.
Perhaps shutting him down before the stretch run will rejuvenate his arm and help the Yankees catch the Blue Jays. As of Monday, Toronto led New York by 0.5 games, although the Bronx Bombers sat atop the wild-card standings.
The other silver lining for the Yankees timing-wise (outside of the possibility that Eovaldi will be fresher at the end of the year) is the impending Wednesday return of CC Sabathia to the rotation.
Sabathia has 18 career postseason starts on his resume and understands the pressure that comes with pitching in a pennant race. He will once again be asked to carry some of the load for his team as a veteran presence while Eovaldi rests up for the stretch run.
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