Yankees pick up Luis Severino’s club option for 2023

Good news has been sparse for Yankees fans recently, but we got some earlier today. Sevy Bump Days can all-but-officially be scheduled into our 2023 calendars, as New York announced earlier today they plan on exercising their $15 million club option on the hard-throwing righty. That club option is the final season from the extension he signed with the club in February 2019.

This was basically a no-brainer, given how Severino pitched in 2022, his first full season in ages after recovering from a myriad of injuries (including Tommy John surgery). But nothing in life is certain, so it’s nice to have confirmation that Sevy will once again take his place in the Yankees rotation next season.

The 28-year-old right-hander’s return to the rotation was inarguably a success. He crossed the 100-inning threshold, pitching to a 3.18 ERA and 1.00 WHIP. That innings number was far and away the most he has thrown since he pitched 191.1 in 2018. Severino missed two months between July and September dealing with a lat injury, though the Yankees essentially admitted that they were playing it safe by giving him so much time to recover.

The highpoint of Severino’s campaign was his final regular-season start, his third since spending two months on the injured list. When he stepped off the mound against the Texas Rangers after throwing 94 pitches, he did so with a zero in the hit column.

With the Yankees exercising the $15 million option on Severino’s extension, we can hopefully see much more of that from Sevy next season, as he slots in alongside Gerrit Cole and Nestor Cortes atop the Yankees rotation. With any luck, he’ll remain healthy and successful, and remain a Yankee long after 2023, an outcome that he has previously stated is his goal.

Update

Three days later, the move is now official. Welcome back, Sevy.