Michael King is quickly proving that he has some of the nastiest stuff in the big leagues.
Now, CC Sabathia wants to see it right from the first inning.
The red-hot New York Yankees have gotten hugely impressive contributions from King, Clay Holmes and their other relievers as they wax pretty much every team they face this season. It’s a great situation for Aaron Boone, but it has led to chatter about making King part of the rotation.
The 26-year-old spent the bulk of his time in the minors as a starter and has made some starts with New York since breaking into the majors, but this season all 12 of his appearances have come in relief.
Asked what he thinks about King’s performance thus far, the ex-Yankees hurler said on his “R2C2” podcast that he belongs in the rotation.
“He’s a starter, his stuff is disgusting, bro," Sabathia said. "His stuff is disgusting. And at a time when everybody went four-seamer top of the zone, high spin rate, he’s sinker/slider, he’s just carving guys up because they don’t have the swing for what he throws.”
The swinging back and forth from rotation to bullpen isn’t always the safest approach, and there have been plenty of times where the best option ultimately is to let a guy just empty the tank across an inning or two instead of stretching him out too much.
But there’s reason to believe King would hold up just fine as a starter. He’s already shown he can go multiple innings, and his success isn’t predicated on him reaching back and throwing gas every single pitch -- he has a starter-level mix.
Whether that’s enough to get him some starts remains to be seen. Either way, the Yankees must be loving what they’re getting from King.
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