The Yankees are approaching the four-year anniversary of two decisions that have left their fingerprints all over the postseason disappointment, clunky roster fits and underperformance that has defined the club’s recent history.
In February 2019, general manager Brian Cashman handed out two contract extensions. One went to Luis Severino just days before his 25th birthday, adding four more years to Severino’s tenure for a modest $40 million. After back-to-back sterling seasons in 2017 and 2018, during which he threw 384.2 combined innings with a 3.18 ERA and established himself as one of the best pitchers in the world, Severino signing on for four more years made sense for both the player and the organization.
Just one month after putting pen to paper, though, Severino’s shoulder started barking. That held him out for the beginning of that year, then a lat strain tacked on six more weeks to his recovery process. He didn’t pitch in a game setting at all until September, making one minor league rehab start and three in the big leagues, trying to save what had clearly become a lost season. Two gutsy postseason outings followed before the big injury finally arrived, forcing Severino into Tommy John surgery that wiped out all of 2020 and most of his 2021 as well.
