Domingo German has been disciplined for his domestic violence incident towards the end of the 2019 season and has been given an 81 game suspension.
Domingo Germán will not appeal his 81 game suspension under the MLB-MLBPA domestic violence policy. He will miss 63 games in 2020. Germán did not issue a statement on the suspension.
— Lindsey Adler (@lindseyadler) January 2, 2020
German served 18 games last season, beginning when he was placed on administrative leave, and will only serve 63 games during the 2020 season.
In addition to this suspension, German will not be eligible to participate in Spring Training for the upcoming season but will be eligible for the 2020 Postseason.
Now that we know German’s situation for 2020, what does this mean to the Yankees’ starting rotation?
As of right now, without German, the Yankees’ rotation is…
- Gerrit Cole
- James Paxton
- Luis Severino
- Masahiro Tanaka
- Jordan Montgomery/J.A. Happ
That rotation can definitely hold its own without Domingo German.
German had a pretty good year last season, putting up a 4.03 ERA, a 110 FIP, and a 1.147 WHIP. If his suspension was given at this time, and the Yankees did not acquire Gerrit Cole, this would leave a gaping hole in their starting rotation after CC Sabathia retiring and German being suspended.
However, this is not the case.
The Yankees finally got their bonafide ace in Gerrit Cole, and the Yankees starters ended the 2019 season much better than how they started it.
Paxton was finally in his groove and pitching well for almost the entire second half of the season and in the playoffs, Tanaka was his normal dominant playoff self, and Severino pitched well in his two regular-season appearances and did pretty well in the playoffs.
As for Jordan Montgomery and J.A. Happ, Montgomery still needs some time to come back to full health after his injury, and J.A. Happ is simply a starting pitcher the Yankees have, who can be of use if needed. Happ also may be traded, so he may not even be a consideration for the Yankees’ fifth starter.
Even with the absence of German, the Yankees rotation has upgraded this offseason and looks to be dominant in 2020. Especially with this guy leading the way.
Featured Image: Frank Franklin II - Associated Press
