Dellin Betances dealing with disabling delivery flaw
Dellin Betances has figured out the flaw in his delivery that has led to horrific control problems lately for the Yankees reliever — and good friend CC Sabathia has offered a way to correct it.
“I’m too inconsistent with my delivery. With a runner on first, I’m trying to go quick,’’ Betances said following Wednesday’s four-walk outing against the Blue Jays that led to a 7-6 Yankees loss. “The timing of my delivery is not there. The stuff is there.’’
In his past nine appearances, the four-time All-Star has worked 7 ¹/₃ innings in which he has given up six hits and nine earned runs, walked 14 and struck out 13.
Sabathia has faced Betances’ dilemma: trying to find the balance between when to be quick to the plate and when not to be.
“I’ve gone through it: Go with one or the other,’’ Sabathia said.
Betances is 6-foot-8, which can lead to faulty mechanics that are harder to correct than they would be for a shorter pitcher.
Because Betances relies heavily on a filthy curveball, opponents have been successful in running on him. In the previous three seasons, base runners attempted 57 steals with Betances on the mound and 50 were successful. A year ago, they were a perfect 21-for-21. This season, runners have swiped seven of nine.
“I’m in between two different deliveries and it has hurt me,’’ said Betances, whose walks per nine innings are at 8.6 compared to last year’s 3.5, while his strikeouts per nine are at 16.8, which is higher than any of the previous three seasons.
Injuries to high-end prospects continue to haunt the Yankees organization. Top pitching prospect James Kaprielian and top position prospect Gleyber Torres already have been lost for the season after Tommy John surgery and Dustin Fowler is gone due to knee surgery.
On Wednesday night, lefty starter Justus Sheffield departed a game for Double-A Trenton with an oblique muscle injury that landed him on the minor league disabled list.
Sheffield, 21, was a big part of the trade of Andrew Miller last July that also netted outfielder Clint Frazier from the Indians. In 16 starts for Trenton, Sheffield is 7-5 with a 3.09 ERA.