After testing his elbow in a bullpen session on Saturday, according to Andy McCullough (Star-Ledger), the Yankees will likely use David Robertson on Tuesday against the Royals. Barring any setbacks, he should be on the team’s postseason roster, as Girardi has demonstrated a willingness to bring Robertson in whenever the team is in need of a strikeout.
Robertson has quietly put together a very productive year in the bullpen, striking out 61 over 41 innings while maintaining a 3.29 ERA (3.07 FIP). In fact, Robertson’s K/9 sits at 13.39—the highest in the AL and the second highest in baseball. Only Jonathon Broxton has been better at striking out opponents (13.50 K/9). If Robertson can lower his walk rate a bit, I wouldn’t be surprised to see him emerge as the team’s setup man in 2010.
UPDATE – Peter Abraham notes that Robertson has been cleared to pitch and will probably make an appearance during today’s game.
UPDATE – Looks like Andy McCullough was right. Abraham confirms that Robertson will not pitch until tomorrow.
If you enjoyed this article, please consider sharing it!
3 Responses to Robertson ready
Leave a Reply
TIQ IQ
I was hearing he would be able to start pitching Monday but they weren’t sure if they were going to hold him off for a few days or not, if he is ready to pitch in today’s game then
I can only take that as a good sign that he is at least feeling close to 100% and is pitching with no discomfort and Robertson with high K/9 could really be useful in the playoffs so lets hope he can come in and be the old Robertson right away.
You say he might be the setup man for 2010? Wow. Do you think he is capable of being as effective as Phil Hughes has been for the Yanks this season?
You mention the K/BB ratio, which is great. But he definitely still has some kinks to work out as a pitcher before becoming a pitcher like Mariano Rivera (in 1996), Tom Gordon (2004-05) and now Hughes in ’09.
If he has a really good postseason, I would say there is a slight chance he would be the setup man for 2010. It’s too early to tell.
His only problem is that he walks too many hitters. If he can rein in his command, then I think he could definitely serve as next year’s setup man. I think the Yankees will opt for internal bullpen fixes rather than pursuing free agents in the winter and with Hughes starting next year, that setup man role will likely be Robertson’s to lose.