YANKS WIN 1 & LOSE BIG 2
Andy breaks leg, CC hits DL as lefties exit
THE YANKEES left the field as winners Wednesday, but it didn’t feel that way.
Hours after the Bombers placed CC Sabathia on the disabled list with a groin injury, they lost Andy Pettitte for the next two months after the pitcher was hit by a one-hopper to the mound that fractured his left fibula, essentially a broken left leg.
The 5-4 victory over the Indians was a minor consolation for the Yankees, who have won five straight but will now be without their two veteran southpaws.
“It’s been a bad day for lefthanders,” Joe Girardi said. “Guys are going to have to step up.”
With David Phelps still building up his pitch count in A-ball, Adam Warren will join the team Thursday, taking Sabathia’s start Friday against the White Sox. Freddy Garcia, who earned the win Wednesday with 21⁄3 scoreless innings of relief, will start Monday in St. Petersburg against the Rays.
Pettitte will likely be placed on the 60-day DL to open a spot on the 40-man roster for Warren. Ryota Igarashi will be added to the roster to take Sabathia’s spot.
GM Brian Cashman said he plans to exhaust his internal options before pursuing any help via trade, although he didn’t rule out such a possibility.
“The good teams roll through that stuff,” Cashman said. “We’ll have to find a way to roll through their absence.”
Before the game, the Yankees announced that Sabathia would be placed on the DL with a Grade 1 strain of his left adductor muscle, which is located near the groin.
Prospects Dellin Betances and Manny Banuelos won’t be helping the big-league rotation anytime soon. Betances (3-5, 6.39 ERA) was demoted from TripleA Scranton to Double-a Trenton Wednesday. Banuelos (0-2, 4.50 at Triple-a) is on the DL with a sore elbow.
Sabathia felt the injury during Sunday’s start against the Mets, but he didn’t inform the team until Tuesday, when he tested his leg during a bullpen session. Sabathia had hoped to avoid the DL, but the team decided to take the cautious route.
“I tried to pitch through it,” Sabathia said, second-guessing his decision to stay in the game Sunday. “That was probably the wrong decision to keep pushing it and ended up hurting it some more.”
Sabathia is expected to miss his final two starts before the AllStar break and rejoin the rotation at the start of the second half.
“I wanted to go out and pitch Friday, but it’s early in the season and I want to be healthy down the stretch,” Sabathia said. “It’s best to take the two weeks now.”
With Sabathia already sidelined, Pettitte was in the middle of a solid outing when he took the mound with a 2-1 lead in the fifth. Casey Kotchman led off with a one-hopper that drilled Pettitte in what initially appeared to be the ankle, leaving him in obvious pain.
“It hurt, but I’ve been hit in the shin and that area so many times and have never had to come out of the game,” Pettitte said. “I was like, ‘All right, it just got me in a good spot. I’ll just get on the mound and eventually it’s going to go away if I take enough time.’”
Pettitte threw a few warmup pitches and convinced Girardi to leave him in. After his first pitch to Lou Marson, Pettitte came off the mound with a noticeable limp, prompting Girardi to immediately remove him.
“That first pitch I threw, I pushed off, and just a lot of pain shooting right into my foot,” Pettitte said. “I knew I wasn’t going to be able to throw another pitch.”
Pettitte won’t need surgery, but it will take six weeks for the fracture to heal, meaning it will be at least two months before the 40-year-old can rejoin the rotation. Pettitte was wearing a walking boot and using crutches when he spoke.
“We’ve got a lot to be positive about,” Pettitte said. “We’re playing well, everybody’s throwing the ball well, and we’ve got guys that are going to step up and do a great job. I’ll be back. Time flies quick. I’ll be back before you know it.”
The rotation has been the Yankees’ strength during their recent run, going 14-4 with a 2.51 ERA in June. With Sabathia and Pettitte on the DL, they will need Hiroki Kuroda, Phil Hughes and Ivan Nova to continue pitching well while hoping for the best from Garcia, Warren and whoever else might wind up taking the ball.
“Nova, Hughes and Kuroda can’t make the starts for CC and Andy,” Girardi said. “So just be yourself; don’t try to do too much because if you do that, usually things go awry. To me, the big thing is just reminding them to go out and do what you do. We’ll take care of the other two days. It’s not your responsibility.”