SEATTLE – After only throwing six pitches in the sixth inning on Thursday, Jake Cousins left the mound with a trainer by his side.
The Yankees’ reliever has been dealing with right pec tightness for a couple days, Aaron Boone said after a 3-2 loss to the Mariners. However, he and Cousins described the injury as minor.
“It was just kind of cranky on me and a little tight,” Cousins said. “The thought was just give me a couple days and see how I bounce back. Today, it felt okay. I was just kind of guarding it a little bit.”
Cousins said he first felt an issue in his previous outing on Sept. 15, and he could be seen wearing a large wrap as he passed through the Yankees’ clubhouse on Wednesday. On Thursday, Cousins’ velocity saw a significant drop, as his fastball was down 3.1 mph from its season average. His sinker was down 4.7 mph, while his slider was down 1.2 mph.
However, the righty said he was just “being careful” and leaning on his signature slider.
“Over the last couple days, it’s gotten a lot better, which is very encouraging to me,” Cousins said. “And then today, I was able to throw. I just didn’t necessarily want to let it eat, and knew I could try and get outs without having to be mid-90s.”
Still, the steep decreases spurred Boone into action.
“He kind of felt like he was good to stay in the game,” the manager said. “I just wanted to be cautious there with the velo down a little bit. So as of right now, we feel like it’s probably just a couple-day thing.”
Cousins said that he has not dealt with pec issues in the past, and he had no plans to undergo imaging. He planned on seeing how he felt on Friday morning, but added, “Hopefully it’s just a couple days. I don’t think it’s anything more than that.”
An unknown commodity before this season, Cousins has enjoyed a breakout season since being acquired from the White Sox on March 31.
The 30-year-old has a 2.37 ERA over a career-high 37 games. His 34% strikeout rate also leads all Yankees relievers by a wide margin.
With the playoffs nearing and Cousins of vital importance to the Yankees’ bullpen, Boone cut the pitcher’s afternoon short.
“We just didn’t want to take any chances there,” the skipper said, “especially with what he’s meant to us.”
