NEW YORK _ The Yankees will proceed through the pandemic-saturated 2020 micro-season without Domingo German while he finishes his domestic violence suspension.
German received an 81-game suspension in January following an MLB investigation of an altercation between the Yankees pitcher and his girlfriend. The league's decision was applied retroactively to Sept. 19 _ the date German was placed on administrative leave _ a stretch that included a combined 18 regular-season and playoff games, leaving him with 63 games left on his ban.
Were there a regular, virus-free 162-game season, German would have been eligible to return to the Yankees on June 5, potentially rejoining the team's rotation behind free agent prize Gerrit Cole, 2019 All-Star Masahiro Tanaka and James Paxton. His suspension will cover the length of the 60-game season, which the league and union finalized on Monday.
The 27-year-old right-hander emerged as a strong mid-rotation option during the 2019 season, winning a league-leading 18 games on the strength of a solid 4.03 ERA and knee buckling curveball. German roared out of the gate with a dominant 9-1, 2.60 ERA start, and was in line to supplement the Yankees' bullpen for the postseason before the allegation surfaced.
If the Yankees advance to the postseason, German would miss the first three games they played before becoming a playoff option.
The Yankees had the option of bringing German to spring training despite the ban, but opted to have him work out on his own in his native Dominican Republic.
