Mariners at Yankees
The New York Yankees will get a glimpse of their recent past when they welcome Robinson Cano and the Seattle Mariners to town for the opener of a three-game series on Friday night. The Yankees will be kicking off a nine-game homestand after dropping their last two contests in Toronto to culminate a 2-3 road trip.
New York decided to let Cano walk via free agency followed the 2013 season after he played his first nine years with the Yankees. Cano is batting only .189 on the season but is tied for the American League lead with five home runs for Seattle, which is starting a nine-game road trip. Getting away from home may not be the worst thing for the Mariners, who needed a 10th-inning homer on Wednesday to snap a five-game skid at Safeco Field. Seattle will send Nathan Karns to the mound to oppose New York right-hander Luis Severino.
TV: 7:05 p.m. ET, ROOT (Seattle), YES (New York)
PITCHING MATCHUP: Mariners RH Nathan Karns (0-1, 7.20 ERA) vs. Yankees RH Luis Severino (0-1, 5.40)
Karns has a shaky season debut at home against Oakland, getting tagged for four runs and seven hits while striking out six over five innings. He has plenty of familiarity with the Yankees from his tenure in Tampa Bay, compiling a 1-0 record and 2.91 ERA in four starts against New York in 2015 and ringing up 28 strikeouts over 21 2/3 innings. Yankees designated hitter Alex Rodriguez was 2-for-10 with a home run against Karns, who held the Yankees to a .215 batting average.
Severino routinely churned out quality starts following his promotion to the majors last August, but he labored in his season debut at the Detroit Tigers. The 22-year-old Dominican struck out five batters over five innings but was touched for three runs on a career-high 10 hits in a 4-0 loss. Severino made five starts at Yankee Stadium during his rookie campaign, compiling a 3-2 record with a 3.16 ERA while surrendering five home runs over 25 2/3 innings.
WALK-OFFS
1. Rodriguez is mired in an 0-for-14 rut, dropping his batting average to .120.
2. Cano is a lifetime .311 hitter in 407 games at the new Yankee Stadium.
3. Yankees 2B Starlin Castro is batting .310 despite going hitless in nine at-bats in Toronto.