SEVERINO EARNED THAT. WADE WILL TOO.

Source: Abbie Parr/Getty Images North America

There's no question... Luis Severino has had his struggles over the past 2 years.  But it looks like he's figured some things out and has become quite dominant at times. Plus, I like how Aaron Boone approached this, giving him the opening day pitching role. It's interesting actually... he watched Yankee ace in his last out yesterday. But Masahiro Tanaka just didn't have it.  And so, Boone went the other way. Instead of chalking it up as a bad outing for Tanaka and "We'll get'em next time"... he did something else.  He went with Sevy.  This gives Sevy enough time to mentally prepare and get ready for opening day.

Boone seems to be doing the same approach with a kid like Tyler Wade.  Seeing what others haven't seen in a few years.  Here's what he just said about Wade. The Times Leader reports:

Source: Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images North America

"Tyler Wade has surprised people at spring training. And that includes New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone.

'Yeah, he’s a better player than I thought,' the first-year manager said. 'I came in, I think, with some expectations, and the organization thinks very highly of him. But getting to see him and just seeing, almost on a daily basis, something he does with his athleticism and his instincts, I think, have been impressive.'"

Source: Ronald Martinez/Getty Images North America

Maybe that's how he's feeling about Sevy.  Who knows.  I like the approach though. Here's that news story about Luis Severino getting the nod. MLB.com writes:

"One year after joining elite company in the American League Cy Young Award race, Luis Severino has been tabbed to start the Yankees' season opener on March 29 against the Blue Jays, manager Aaron Boone announced on Saturday.

Photo: New York Daily News

'We feel like it's his time for it,' Boone said. 'With what he was able to do last year, we feel like he's in a really good place now. We just felt like now is the time for him to take on that role and we think he's ready for it. I'm looking forward to seeing him grow in his role as one of the aces of this staff.'"

I hope Boone handled these decisions like this all season.  It's about chances and moments and motivation for these kids.  I like this alot.