Michael Pineda

2017

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2016

Pineda held most of his incredible walk rate from 2014 while also spiking his strikeouts by three percentage points and set a career high in groundballs, which should have resulted in a darn good season. Maybe something like his 2011 and 2014 smashed together (3.17 ERA, 1.02 WHIP and 8.4 K/9). Instead, it was his worst season yet. A major HR issue at home (1.6 HR/9) and way too many hits on the road (10.5 H/9, .363 BABIP) sank his season. His season was a graduate-level course on control vs. command. He threw strikes, but really hittable ones. His .904 OPS in the middle third of the zone (including pitches outside of the strike zone, too) was eighth-worst among SPs with 27-plus starts. There are flaws here and injury risk, but getting a 7.4 K/BB in a double-digit round doesn't happen often, so cost mitigates a good portion of that risk and makes him a worthy gamble. At worst, he's a road-only streamer as that ridiculous BABIP will come down.

2015

After a brilliant MLB debut, Pineda was dealt to the Yankees in early 2012 in an intriguing challenge trade that sent Jesus Montero to Seattle. Pineda then missed the next two seasons before finally working his way back to make his Yankee debut in 2014. He got off to an incredible start, with just a 1.00 ERA in his first three starts, before the Pine Tar Incident in Boston. He went out to the mound with four pounds of it slathered on his neck and was eventually caught after allowing two runs on four hits in just an inning and two-thirds. His suspension ended up not mattering because injury once again struck and cost him three and a half months of time. He finally returned in mid-August and got right back on track, allowing two or fewer runs in eight of his final nine starts. Pineda lacked the dominance we saw in his rookie season, but his command and control were impeccable. Unfortunately, with just 76 innings of work, he remains a severe health risk, but at least we were able to see him perform at a high level, so the fear of skills erosion after two years off has faded.

2014

The much-hyped trade of Jesus Montero for Pineda has not worked out for either team at this point. With Pineda, the issue has been injury rather than skill degradation, and while it's hard to get excited about a pitcher that has missed two full years with shoulder troubles, Pineda is still just 25, and could very well bounce back with the electric stuff that made him so exciting to watch back in 2011. In his return from injury, Pineda made 10 starts over three levels in the minors last season, carrying a 10.0 K/9 and 2.3 BB/9 over 23.1 innings at Triple-A. The poor track record of health makes him something of a lottery ticket, but the payoff could prove to be a big one if he's able to return to something resembling his pre-injury form at the big league level this season.

2013

The trade of Pineda for Jesus Montero was a huge topic last offseason, but things started to go downhill for Pineda right from the moment he became a Yankee. Not only does Pineda have a shoulder injury that kept him out for all of 2012 and will sideline him for at least half of 2013 as well, but he also had a DUI in August. It's too soon to know whether the dominant stuff we saw in 2011 will come back after the injury, but Pineda is still just 24, and is definitely worth a flyer if you can find a fill-in for the first half.

2012

Pineda turned in a rousing rookie season last year, highlighted by a trip to the All-Star Game. His 9.22 K/9IP ranked second in the American League and he led rookie pitchers in strikeouts as he overpowered batters with a fastball that averaged 94.6 mph, fourth highest in baseball. In fact, his 26.0 missed-swing percentage was third in the AL. The popular theory that Pineda's 5.12 second-half ERA was a result of tiring down the stretch probably got a little more play than it merited. Pineda got hammered in three second-half starts (two of which came in mid-July), which bloated his ERA; his remaining ERA was 3.40, not far off his first-half pace. (He was also on an innings limit that kept him from going deep into games in the second half and leveling out his ERA.) Importantly, his strikeout and walk rates remained consistent (the K/9IP was actually up a few ticks), and his batting average against was still only .236. In addition to his mid-to-upper-90s fastball, Pineda features a nasty slider and a change-up that by year's end had developed into a weapon that helped him neutralize left-handers. This season, he'll likely be allowed to go deeper into games and to approach 200 innings. However, he'll go from a pitchers' park to a hitters' park after his trade to the Yankees and pitch more games in the AL East. His ERA and WHIP may take a hit, but he should be a mainstay in the Yankees rotation for many years.

2011

The organization's top prospect, Pineda enters spring training with a rotation spot all but assured. He dominated last season at Double-A and Triple-A, totaling 154 strikeouts in 139.1 innings. He walked just 34 for a 2.2 BB/9IP and a 4.5 K/BB. Pineda's fastball has good sinking action, and he improved the velocity last season, pitching in the mid-to-upper 90s. He also has a very good changeup and a developing slider. Pineda missed much of 2009 with an elbow injury, and the Mariners shut him down early last season and probably will have him on an innings limit this season. If the Mariners don't keep him at Triple-A to delay his service clock, expect him to break camp in the Seattle rotation.