Yankees Injuries

Brian Cashman on Yankees' plans for Michael Pineda

By TanyaAnderson@Tanya__Anderson May 30, 2013, 2:30pm EDT

Cashman noted yesterday that once Pineda's rehab is up he'll either go "to the major leagues or the minor leagues." #Yankees
— Josh Norris (@jnorris427) May 30, 2013

He said that whether he goes to MLB or MiLB will be "whatever the circumstances dictate at the time," so he won't necessarily go to NYY.
— Josh Norris (@jnorris427) May 30, 2013

Of course, he also said that after EST was done, they were going to "release him into the wild," so there are a variety of options.
— Josh Norris (@jnorris427) May 30, 2013

As the date of Michael Pineda's expected return draws near, the question of how exactly the Yankees plan to use him becomes more and more of an issue. The reports out of his rehab have truly been nothing but positive, making it seem like the team and Pineda dodged a huge bullet when he tore his labrum. If Pineda is already throwing 93-95 mph early on, then it seems like he may find a way to get back to the pitcher that the Yankees thought they were getting in return when they shipped Jesus Montero off to his demise in Seattle.

In typical Brian Cashman fashion, the GM was non-committal on the topic of what the team's immediate plans for Pineda would be once he is finished rehabbing. He may end up in the major league rotation, or could find himself somewhere down on the farm. The latter wouldn't be a death sentence, as he did take the entire last year off from baseball, but it sounds like if everything is right with him, he'll be coming to the Bronx.

Someone probably needs to teach him to cut his fingernails, though.