These days, MLB requires most teams to have between eight and ten starters capable of contributing and getting major league hitters out.
Why that many when typical rotations have five pitchers?
Well, injuries happen.
Suspensions happen: doubleheaders, demotions, and other scenarios happen, too.
It’s called pitching depth: if you have only five good starters, what happens when one or two go down with an injury?
Thankfully for the New York Yankees, their top five has been extremely durable.
Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes Jr., Luis Severino, Jordan Montgomery, and Jameson Taillon not only have been healthy all year, which is an incredible accomplishment by itself, but they have all been very, very good.
“The Yankees’ rotation of Gerrit Cole, Luis Severino, Jameson Taillon, Jordan Montgomery and Nestor Cortes has remained intact all season, starting 76 of the team’s 80 games,” ESPN’s Buster Olney tweeted.
The Yankees' rotation of Gerrit Cole, Luis Severino, Jameson Taillon, Jordan Montgomery and Nestor Cortes has remained intact all season, starting 76 of the team's 80 games.
— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) July 4, 2022
The Best Rotation In The American League
One of the reasons why the Yanks have the best record in baseball is because their rotation, a top unit in the league, has pitched nearly all of the games: no improvised Double-A pitchers or journeymen have had to take care of important innings.
That’s huge.
The Yankees’ starters have the best ERA in the American League and the second-best in MLB, at 3.01.
Cole has been the ace we were all expecting, but every remaining member of the rotation has performed like an ace, too.
At 3.35, Severino has had the highest ERA of the group.
If that’s the worst ERA, imagine the rest of the bunch.
The Yankees have succeeded largely because of their incredible starting pitching, and as long as their top five remains healthy, they will be very, very hard to beat.
NEXT: Yankees Looking To Keep Up An Elite Road Mark In Cleveland