Most of us were pretty doubtful that we would see Michael Pineda again this season, but now it looks like he’s just about ready to rejoin the team. Pineda will make his final rehab start today with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, and then if all goes according to plan he will rejoin the team Wednesday in Baltimore. Pineda is scheduled to throw around 80 pitches and hopefully gets through five innings. He had been working out at Yankee stadium this week, which included a bullpen session the other day. Seems he is finally healthy and the Yankees are thrilled with where he is regarding his status.
After this weekend the team will head out on an important road trip that includes three games against Baltimore and then a series in Tampa. With David Phelps out for a few weeks and the uncertainty about Masahiro Tanaka, Pineda will be a big addition to the pitching staff that has been holding its own lately. And for all of those fans that keep bringing up the pine tar incident, I think we are finally passed that problem. Time to think about the positives he can bring to this team for the final stretch run.
