Thanks to some rain on Tuesday, the New York Yankees will not embark on a double-header against the Chicago Cubs. The team will send their big offseason acquisition Masahiro Tanaka up for his third start as the starting pitcher looks to overcome early innings woes and get the win over the National League Cubs.
Tanaka's major league baseball career is off to a relatively solid start despite giving up hits in early innings to cause panic in the Yankees fanbase. The pitcher is 1-0 with a 3.21 ERA in two starts, but could have better numbers if he could hold off batters in the first two innings. Tanaka allowed a home run to the very first batter he faced before giving up another two runs in the fecund innings. He settled down for the next five innings as New York got the win. In his second start, he gave up a three-run home run in the second innings and three more singles over the last fiving innings as the team took the loss. The three runs in each start was something Tanaka did only four times in 27 starts while playing in Japan.
The Yankees need Tanaka to pitch well as injuries are beginning to run wild in the lineup. Derek Jeter will be out with a quad issue. Brian McCann and Francisco Cervelli are both out as is Mark Teixeira. Carlos Beltran could find himself playing first base again despite his disdain for the position change.
Chicago will send Jason Hammel to the mound who has pitched well since joining the team. He is 2-0 with a 2.63 ERA in his first two starts. While with Tampa Bay, Hammel went 3-3 with a 5.17 ERA in 17 appearances against the New York Yankees. Beltran looks to have some success against Hammel. The outfielder went 3 for 4 with a home run and two RBI, while being 9 for 18 with three home runs and five RBIs in his last five games. He is 2 for 8 against Hammel.
