With Chad Green likely out for the season, a Yankee fans natural reaction is to plug the hole in the rotation with former phenom, Luis Severino. They’d let Severino finish the year trying to exercise his demons. Since they “waved the white flag,” the Yankees and their fans have been professing the future, and giving Severino the remainder of the year as a starter seems like a no-brainer. Except for the fact that it isn’t. The inconvenient truth for the Yankee organization is that they are only 3.5 games out of the wild card spot, with 29 games remaining. They trail the Orioles and Tigers who are tied for the 2nd wild card spot. They also trail Houston by a game a half, but hold a half game led over the defending champion Royals. The Yankees can’t knowingly put in a shaky Severino for five more starts, while the playoffs still loom. I believe there is another, and even better possibility. Bryan Mitchell is back, and starting games in the minors. The hole in the rotation needs to be filled by Mitchell, while Severino should be given the 8th inning job immediately.

Since returning to the club in July, Severino has made six appearances; four as a reliever and two as a starter. Here’s the breakdown:

Starter:       8 IP, 15 H, 12 ER,  8 K, 2 HR
Reliever:  9.1 IP,  1 H,   0 ER, 11 K, 0 HR

Severino

I may not be Gene Michael, but I can read a stat sheet. The Yankees need to find out what they have in Bryan Mitchell. Mitchell, who is normally plagued by control issues, is currently posting the best K/BB ratio of his young career, at almost 5/1.After one more start at AAA, bring Mitchell up and give him the rest of the season as a starter.

Bryan mitchell

Now, Severino does not get sentenced to mop up duty. The Yankees need to give him the 8th inning job immediatley. Let Tyler Clippard be a mid-game fireman, and give Severino the 8th. I know Yankee fans desperately want Severino to become their own Pedro Martinez, or better yet, their own Noah Syndergaard. But, if he turns out to be the next Andrew Miller or Dellin Betances, would it be all that terrible? Baseball has changed, and shut down back-end relievers are worth almost as much as a 2nd or 3rd starter. The Royals won the World Series because they had timely hitting and shortened a nine inning game to six. The Yankees this year threatened the same ability, though their starting rotation couldn’t always make it there. Add to that, the fact that teams are willing to pay all-time high prices for bullpen help that they can’t develop. The Cubs & Indians threw top-level prospects at the Yankees to add the bullpen depth needed to win a title. The possibility of a Severino/Betances one-two punch, gives the Yankees control over young back-end aces, shutting down rallies and closing out games for years to come.