Bleeding Yankee Blue: PITCHING PHENOM JUSTUS SHEFFIELD HEATS IT UP IN TAMPA

Sunday, August 21, 2016

PITCHING PHENOM JUSTUS SHEFFIELD HEATS IT UP IN TAMPA

If you haven't been following the progress of all of our young phenoms we picked up since the August 1st trade deadline, we forgive you. But, if you have missed the excitement in Tampa around Justus Sheffield, you better wake up. Part of the trade that sent Andrew Miller to Cleveland, Sheffield headed to Tampa in early August and he has not stopped wowing scouts and coaches with his ability to challenge hitters and win.

"Since arriving to the Yankees organization, Sheffield (no relation to Gary, a source of confusion during the deal) has been dominant. In three starts, Sheffield has gone 2-0 with a 1.04 ERA. Those outings include only two runs on 10 hits across 17.1 innings. A 17-to-4 strikeout-to-walk ratio has accompanied the eye-opening numbers for a pitcher that has the kind of stuff to be part of the Yankees future rotation," reported NJ.com on Thursday.

As the Rio Olympic Games come to a close on this somber, dog-day Sunday in August, I am feeling hopeful and celebratory about the possibility of our pitching rotation for the future. 20-year-old Sheffield has a long way to go as he matures as a pitcher, but he appears to have the grit to get there.

As reported by NJ.com, "The most amazing part of Sheffield's most recent outing (6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB) for the Yankees No. 7 prospect? He didn't think he had his best stuff, per MiLB.com:

"To be honest, I really didn't have my best stuff tonight," Sheffield said. "It took me a while to even find my slider, and it was off and on all night. I threw some changeups, which I really wanted to focus on coming in, getting my changeup established and trying to cut guys down on my changeup and get quick outs. I feel like I did a pretty good job with that tonight. My fastball command, it was there and then it wasn't."

Very mature self reflection for a young talented pitcher who is knows he will need to continue to work hard to be a force in the major leagues. Honestly, this is the most exciting part of the news. You see so many young people just remaining complacent with where they are in their careers. They don't want to work any harder than they have to. But, this young athlete knows he has a lot to learn and is willing to get there.

"At first, it was a whirlwind," he said. "I didn't really know what to expect coming to a new organization, new teammates, completely new uniform, just a whole new organization. It was a whirlwind. I didn't really know what to expect. I was definitely anxious, but I've kind of settled in. It's a great organization...I love my teammates," reported MiLB.com.

This is the first sign of life in our pitching I've seen in a while. Don't lose sight of Justus Sheffield, another important ingredient to our journey toward #28.