New York Yankees’ General Manager Explains Why He Stopped Top Ace Luis Severino From Playing the 2023 World Baseball Classic

The World Baseball Classic is around the corner. The competition will be tense with many talented MLB stars participating. But one player was recently forced to pull out due to their general manager’s objection. This is none other than New York Yankees star pitcher Luis Severino. He was all set to represent the Dominican Republic before Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman intervened.

Cashman refused to let Severino participate in the tournament. There was a lot of speculation as to why this decision was made. But Cashman recently came out and confirmed the reason that he made Severino pull out. 

New York Yankees GM Brian Cashman confirmed that Luis Severino’s injury history was the reason for pulling him out

Yankees General Manager Brian Cashman forced pitcher Luis Severino to pull out of the World Baseball Classic. Cashman recently confirmed the reason while on WFAN Sports Radio’s The Score. He stated that Severino had a history of injuries. Furthermore, he didn’t want his star pitcher to get hurt. The Yankees GM specifically mentioned Severino’s injury history over the last few years.

While on The Score, Cashman said, “We support our players going, but when you have a player like Luis Severino who has had an injury history the last few years, of course he wanted to play and represent his country, but that’s not in our best interest given losing him so far over the last few years”.

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Severino only pitched 18 innings between 2019 to 2021 while recovering from Tommy John surgery. Injuries hampered his comeback season in 2022. Furthermore, he was even pulled out of his best game last year due to fear of injury. The Yankees will need Severino to be at his best for the upcoming 2023 season.

The Yankees suffered in the 2022 postseason due to injuries

The New York Yankees had a fantastic regular season and topped the AL East. But they collapsed in the postseason and lost in the ALCS. A big reason for this was poor playoff performance and injuries. Several key players were injured or just recovering from injuries

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The Yankees will need players like Severino to be completely healthy throughout the season and deep into the playoffs. That’s why it makes sense for Cashman to have pulled his star pitcher out of the World Baseball Classic.

What do you think of Brian Cashman’s explanation for making Luis Severino pull out of the World Baseball Classic? Please share your thoughts in the comments below.