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NEW YORK, NY - MAY 11: Michael Pineda #35 of the New York Yankees delivers a pitch in the sixth inning against the Kansas City Royals at Yankee Stadium on May 11, 2016 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)

Yankees game 38 preview (5/17/16)

Two struggling pitchers, Michael Pineda (1-4, 6.28 ERA) and Zack Greinke (3-3, 5.26 ERA), get the ball in game two in the desert. Pineda is coming off another clunker against the Royals. He allowed six runs on six hits and four walks through 5.2 innings. He did strikeout seven, but by the time he settled down it was too late, as four of those six runs came in the first inning. Early troubles have been a running theme this season for Big Mike. Opponents are batting .437 with nine doubles and six homers off him in the first two innings. By the time the third comes around, however, they are hitting .202.

“There’s a lot of pitchers that go through that,” Joe Girardi said. “It’s not something that’s always been the case for him. It’s just a case of making a few more pitches. Some of them have been with two outs and nobody on; it’s just putting the inning away.”

Greinke hasn’t been the pitcher the D-Backs thought he would be when they gave him $206.5 million. He has show flashes of the All Star he was in 2015, but nothing consistent. In his last outing against San Fran, he allowed four runs on eight hits and three walks through six innings. He is 1-3 with a 7.28 ERA in five home starts this season. His last start against the Yanks was back on July 30, 2013 while with the Dodgers. He went seven innings, giving up two runs on five hits with no walks and seven K’s in a no decision. The last time he beat the Bombers was back in 2008 when he was with the Royals.

 

Tidbits:

Arizona is 6-16 in their home ballpark this season.

With ARod on the DL, Starlin Castro is the active player with the most at-bats against Greinke. He is 5-19 (.263) with two doubles, two RBIs and three walks.

Brian McCann has 10 RBIs in his last 10 games, and is batting .300 in May.

 

9:40 pm on YES.