New York Yankees: 3 Keys to Michael Pineda's Spring Training Success

The acquisition of 2011 rookie All-Star Michael Pineda is the New York Yankees' prized possession of the offseason.

Pitching for a Seattle Mariners' squad that ranked last in the MLB in 2011 in terms of team batting, Pineda went 9-10 with a 3.74 ERA, including victories against the Detroit Tigers, Tampa Bay Rays and his new team, the Yankees.

While he put together a solid rookie campaign, there is still work to be done for Pineda, who New York would like to groom into the No. 2 spot behind C.C. Sabathia.

There's still work to be done, but if Pineda can work out the kinks, he'll have a successful career in pinstripes.

Here are three keys to Pineda's success:

Develop His Changeup

The 6'7", 260 pound Michael Pineda led all rookies in 2011 in strikeouts, with 173 in 171 innings pitched. 

To put his season into perspective, only Brandon Morrow (10.19) struck out more batters in the AL per nine innings than Pineda (9.11). 

And he did it all with two primary pitches.

One of the knocks on Pineda is that he only throws two pitches—a blazing fastball and a plus slider.

If he wants to succeed in New York, and more importantly the A.L. East, he'll need to develop his changeup.

And Yankee's GM Brian Cashman is well aware of the issue.

"He's got to develop his changeup. It's a below-average pitch for him right now. I don't think there's a No. 1 or 2 starter in the big leagues right now with only two pitches."

Fellow Yankee Joba Chamberlain is proof that an MLB pitcher can't survive with just a fastball and a slider.

Chamberlain was electrifying during his first two seasons in pinstripes, but once MLB hitters figured him out, his ERA spiked to 4.75 in 2009 and 4.40 in 2010.

But as Pineda explains, he knows the source of his inability to throw an effective change.

"Last year, sometimes when I threw my changeup, I opened my right shoulder.This year, I'm focused a little more on keeping it closed."

It's been reported though that Russell Martin believes Pineda has been working on his craft.

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“Joe (Girardi) gave me a call this offseason and said, 'We’ve got to get this guy to work on his changeup,’ ” said Martin, “but obviously he has worked on it because I saw a good one."

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If Pineda can consistently throw his changeup, he'll be a nightmare for opposing hitters this season. 

Focus on Pitching, Not the Media

Michael Pineda feels overwhelmed since being traded to the Big Apple, and you can't blame the guy.

New York is the most difficult city to play any professional sport, as the media and the fans require loads of attention and administer great expectations upon their players.

"My head is (spinning) because I’ve never stayed in New York," is what Pineda told his buddy and new teammate Robinson Cano.

Cano and Pineda, who both share a Domican Republic bond, first became friends last season when the Yankees traveled to Seattle.  Even before they were teammates, Cano was mentoring Pineda.

It's understandable for Pineda, as he spent his only season in the big leagues playing for the small-market Seattle Mariners, whose average attendance (23,411) was more than 20,000 less than the Yankees' 45,107.

It's important for Pineda to start the month of April on a positive note because as Yankee fans, we know what the pressure of playing on the biggest stage in professional sports can do to a person.

Kevin Brown, Randy Johnson, A.J. Burnett, Kenny Rogers, Kei Igawa, Hideki Irabu and Carl Pavano.

What do these guys have in common?

They all deteriorated via the expectations placed on them.

However, I don't think Pineda will end up in the same conversation as the pitchers noted above.  He's got too good of stuff to ever become an epic failure as a member of the Yankees.  

Lose Some Weight

He's listed at 260, but it's being reported that Michael Pineda came to camp 20 pounds overweight.

The Yankees are asking the righty to lose 10 pounds, meaning he would still be pitching 10 pounds above his listed weight.

This isn't necessarily a bad thing, as the Yankees' No. 1 ace and former Cy Young winner C.C. Sabathia, who at one point was pitching at 315 pounds.

Sabathia entered 2012 spring training noticeably lighter, as he feels his performance diminished last season due to his weight.

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“I have no idea. Just one of those things. I wish I could pitch lights-out every time, but I can’t. It’s just up to me to throw away other factors, like my weight, different things. I’ll be healthy and strong enough to go out and give this team everything I’ve got at the end of this year.”

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Through July, Sabathia was 15-5 with a 2.56 ERA, but his performance dropped during the final two months of the season, as he was 4-3 with a 4.06 ERA to close out the season.

And then there was the Detroit playoff series, where Sabathia sported a 6.23 ERA in just 8.2 innings of work.

Sabathia is now listed at 290, and the Yankees have got to be hoping that Sabathia's new dedication to maintaining his weight rubs off on Pineda.

While he's not thought of as a No. 2 starter yet, Brian Cashman and the Yankees are aware that he has the capability, but still needs work.

"I made the trade for a reason. I'm dreaming on the guy, obviously, and we're dreaming on the guy. But the fact of the matter is there's work to be done still."

If Pineda can make his weight a non-issue, he'll be able to shift his attention towards improving his changeup and bringing a 28th World Series championship to the Bronx.

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