NEW YORK – Masahiro Tanaka doesn’t even know if he will be ready when it matters most.
Tanaka, who was hit in the head with a 112 mph line more than a week ago, said it is not a lock to be ready for his turn in the rotation when the regular season begins.
“I’m not sure,” Tanaka said through a Japanese interpreter during a conference call at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday. “I want to be optimistic and say yes, but obviously the injury is to the head.”
It would seem highly unlikely that the Yankees have a healthy and ready for Tanaka anywhere near the start of the 60 game season.
Tanaka suffered a mild concussion when Giancarlo Stanton’s lining hit him on the right temple on July 4 during the Yankees first official during the restart of spring training. The 31-year-old remained motionless on the mound for about 10 minutes before leaving the field with the help of medical personnel. He spent several hours in a nearby hospital after the incident.
“I think it is something I should be cautious about and be careful about, more than other injuries,” said Tanaka. “For now, I think it’s just a step-by-step process and that’s all I can say…”
Tanaka, who played light catches on the field, said his next step would be to launch a bullpen session from a mound. After that, he would have to face the hitters again. Tanaka said he was not sure if he would feel any sense of fear or apprehension once he faces batters for the first time since he was hit.
“I think we are taking the necessary steps to get there,” said Tanaka. “This is all a daily process, taking it day by day. But I hope I can get back to the mound sooner rather than later. ”
Tanaka also discussed her decision to go to her native Japan at the start of the coronavirus pandemic, which closed the sport on March 13. Tanaka said he did it for the safety of his family.
In a social media post at the time, Tanaka alluded to an incident in the United States that made him feel in danger. When asked to explain, Tanaka declined.
He did acknowledge that “there were some incidents.”
“I don’t think he necessarily wants to go into detail about that at the moment,” he said. “I think I said what I wanted to say through some social networks at the time. It was more than I said before, considering what was best for the family. Obviously, there were some incidents. But someone had to decide what we were going to do. Just considering everything, I thought that going back to Japan would make more sense for our family. That was the decision behind that. “
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