Thursday’s disaster aside, the strategy of using an opener to start a game has worked well for the New York Yankees. It’s been good enough to the point that team general manager Brian Cashman says he will consider using an opener in a playoff game this postseason.
Cashman told reporters prior to the Yankees’ 19-5 loss to the Cleveland Indians that using an opener would be a “possibility” that depended on many factors.
Brian Cashman on using an opener in the playoffs: "(It will depend on) schedule, see who's healthy, who's available to us, is Sevy back? Where is everybody else? How is our bullpen lined up? What are the off-days? … It's certainly something that is going to be a possibility."
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) August 15, 2019
Opener Chad Green was hammered by the Indians Thursday, allowing five runs over one third of an inning. The rest of the bullpen struggled as well; the entire staff allowed seven home runs in the game. The Yankees have still won 10 of 12 games Green has opened, so it’s mostly been a successful tactic.
The Yankees’ bullpen has been rock solid this season, but Domingo German is their only starter with a sub-4.00 ERA. Using Green in a playoff game might make sense at some point.
