New York Yankees vs. Seattle Mariners: Jameson Taillon vs. Logan Gilbert

The trade deadline has come and gone and the Yankees certainly seized the opportunity to shore up weaker areas of the roster. They got the ball rolling across the league when they acquired Andrew Benintendi from the Royals last Wednesday. Then, on the eve of deadline day, they first added Cubs sidearming reliever Scott Effross before truly setting the headlines ablaze with a blockbuster that netted them starter Frankie Montas and reliever Lou Trivino from the Athletics. All of this without relinquishing one of their top-three prospects... not too shabby.

I have to imagine that’s given the team an extra shot in the arm heading into this series with the Mariners — they certainly looked energized in their 7-2 victory last night. Now, they’ll have to keep it going without Joey Gallo (unsurprising) and Jordan Montgomery (very surprising) in the clubhouse.

Jameson Taillon seems to have found his groove back in two of his last three starts after a difficult stretch in June and early July. His six scoreless innings with eight strikeouts last time out against the Royals proved vital to hold off Kansas City long enough for Aaron Judge to walk it off. He cited his command of the sinker to the armside part of the plate and cutter to the gloveside part of the plate as they keys to his success, and he will have to replicate that against a Mariners offense that is one of the best in the game at not expanding the zone. In 20 starts, Taillon is 10-2 with a 3.72 ERA (103 ERA+), 3.68 FIP, and 92 strikeout in 109 innings.

Logan Gilbert is putting together one of the most impressive sophomore campaigns by a pitcher in recent memory. The former top pitching prospect for the Mariners is averaging almost six innings per start and is doing a better job at limiting the long ball. The best start of his career actually came against the Yankees last year — seven scoreless innings of one-hit ball with eight strikeouts. At 96 mph, his fastball possesses the seventh-highest average velocity of any qualified starting pitcher. He also employs a slider in the high-80s, a curveball in the low-80s, and a changeup in the mid-80s used almost exclusively against lefties. In 21 starts, Gilbert is 10-4 with a 2.78 ERA (137 ERA+), 3.43 FIP, and 118 strikeouts in 123 innings.

The Yankees lineup will be without Joey Gallo after his trade to the Dodgers, though I have a sneaking suspicion that he wouldn’t have made the starting nine anyway. Jose Trevino retains his spot after the first multi-home run performance of his career last night. The only other change to last night’s lineup sees Gleyber Torres get the night off. Matt Carpenter plays right, Aaron Judge moves to DH, Anthony Rizzo plays first, and DJ LeMahieu slides to second. Trivino and Effross will be active in the bullpen tonight and ready for their potential Bronx debuts. Given that Montgomery is gone and replacement Harrison Bader is on the IL, Tim Locastro is up and also available off the bench.

The Mariners roll out the exact same lineup that could only scratch across a pair of runs last night. It’s a shame we won’t get to see the 21-year-old phenom Julio Rodríguez this series as he’s currently on the IL after getting struck in the hand with a pitch on Saturday. Thankfully the X-rays came back negative, so there’s still a chance the Yankees could see him in action next time the two teams meet in a week.

How to watch

Location: Yankee Stadium — Bronx, NY

First pitch: 7:05 pm ET

TV broadcast: YES, Root Sports Northwest, MLB Network (out-of-market only)

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9, WADO 1380

Online stream: MLB.tv

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