Luis Severino has simple solution to struggles: 'Be in more control'

NEW YORK -- Since the beginning of July, the once-dominantLuis Severino has looked like a far different pitcher.

In that six-week stretch, theNew York Yankees' ace has allowed more runs and home runs than he did in the three months prior. A string of comparatively haggard outings have caused his ERA to rise, his losses to increase and the questions around him to mount.

After dropping yet another game Monday night, this time against the New York Metsin a make-up of a game that was rained out at Yankee Stadium, Severino's only answer was a simple one: He just has to get better.

"Things are not going my way right now," Severino said, "but I will work and try to fix it."

In this outing, the 24-year-old right-hander lasted only four innings, allowing seven hits, four runs and two home runs in an 8-5 loss. The loss pushed the Yankees to an even 10 games behind the Boston Red Sox in the AL East.

Severino's four-inning appearance was his shortest in the regular season since a game against the Twins in September. It marked the second time in four starts that Severino didn't make it out of the fifth inning, something that hadn't happened at any earlier point this season.

"We got to help him find and get to the bottom of it," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. "We've got to get this righted, and that's on all of us. Obviously, he's so dynamic when he's right."

Severino hasn't been "right" since his July 1 start in a Sunday Night Baseball win over the Red Sox. Following that two-hitter he took into the seventh, Severino's ERA sat at 1.98. It was one of the best in the big leagues.

His ERA now stands at 3.27.

"I keep doing the same mistakes, over and over. I keep missing with my fastball," Severino said. "I need to be in more control."

Severino contends that he is healthy and isn't feeling fatigued. The Yankees also aren't concerned about how he is physically, citing that in his most recent outings he still has gotten his fastball consistently into the upper 90s.

Regardless, in the seven starts he has made since July 1, Severino has had one of the worst ERAs (7.50) in the league. He has allowed home runs in each one of those games. In total, opposing batters have hit 11 home runs off Severino in those seven starts, including the two that Amed Rosario and Jose Bautista had Monday.

"Some pitches were up in the zone, and they put it in the seats," Yankees catcher Austin Romine said.

Despite seeing Severino throw what he called "mis-executed" pitches, Romine said, "The stuff is still there. It's still sharp."

Although Boone didn't see the same crispness in Severino's fastball and slider Monday that he knows those pitches can possess, he maintains his belief that his ace is close to pitching like he did early this season.

"We've seen enough flashes that he looks like Sevy, but just a little bit of flatness that other teams have taken advantage of with some slug," Boone said.

The Yankees skipper isn't planning to sit Severino anytime soon, causing him to skip a turn in the rotation and having some time to recollect his thoughts mentally and give his body a break physically.

"[Some pitchers] pitch through fatigue or pitch through a little dead period or a time when they're struggling a little bit, and they kind of grind their way through it," Boone said. "With Sevy, and really with all of our pitchers, we pick spots where we try to give them an extra day, slot in a guy to give them that sixth day [off] or sometimes that seventh day.

"We've done a fair share of that this year, and we'll have to continue to work through ways and get to the bottom of getting him righted because again, he's so important to us."

The Yankees won 16 of Severino's first 18 starts this season. Since then, they have gone 3-4.

Despite Severino's recent struggles, his teammates believe he will soon turn it around and get back to being the pitcher they know he can be.

"He's still our guy. He's still the guy we lean to," Romine said. "He's our guy that we want out there in big situations. Guys go through this. We've seen it before.

"If there was a big dip in velocity and stuff like that, I'd be a little worried, but I'm seeing a guy that's going out there and pounding heaters and throwing sliders. We can get a little more execution out of him."