Saturday marks exactly three years to the day of Luis Severino’s last postseason start, which came in Game 3 of the 2019 ALCS against Houston.
Like that series, the 2022 ALDS is tied 1-1 after the not Yankees won Game 2 in extras, and it will mark 12 days since Severino last took the mound in an actual game – one of the downsides to being a “back-end” starter on a team that skipped the Wild Card Series – but he is ready for the challenge.
“Really anxious, but it will be fun to go back on the mound and compete again,” Severino said Friday. “I’m really excited, and I didn’t forget how it feels to start in the postseason. So I will try to do my best to execute my pitches and try to get quick innings, quick counts, and try to get hitters out.”
Severino never thought about a playoff start while he was injured this season, taking it start by start after returning in late September. But, with that start coming on the road, he’s ready for an atmosphere that’s not as welcoming as it would’ve been in the Bronx.
“Of course it's going to be that way. You are not going to play all games in Yankee Stadium,” he said. “But pitching in Houston a couple years ago, it's the same. They are going to cheer for their team, but I try not to think about that. I try to focus on my game and my catcher and do my job.”
His job is going to be to get as many outs as possible against a Guardians lineup that doesn’t strike out very much – but like both Gerrit Cole and Nestor Cortes ahead of him, he’s going to stick to what got him where he is.
“I cannot run away from my game. If I do something that I'm not used to doing, I think that's not me, and something can go wrong if I don't go with the thing that I do good,” he said. “You know, even if don't they strike out, the pitches I throw to strike out somebody else, they make contact, hopefully, can get an out.”
Even though it’s not an elimination game, per se, even if the Yankees win, they still have to win one more to advance – which means, in theory, much like Jacob deGrom’s start in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series for the Mets, this could be it for Sevy in pinstripes.
The Yankees have a team option on Severino for 2023, who has tough injury history and was very vocal about his move to the 60-day IL – but on that last regard, at least, he’s happy in the end that it happened.
“I don't know if I would have felt as strong as I am right now (without moving to the 60-day IL),” he said. “At the beginning, I was not thrilled with the decision, but of course they have a bunch of doctors, they have a bunch of people that know what is best for their players. I respect the decision. And hopefully it's worked for the best, and it works for the best for them and it works for the best for me.”
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