Yankees demote Sonny Gray from starting rotation to bullpen

BOSTON — His name, Sonny Gray, is an oxymoron and that seems to fit his Yankees tenure. He’s been a contradiction in terms, possessing superior stuff but producing mostly inferior performances as a member of the team’s starting rotation.

And now the long-range forecast for Gray is hazy. The 28-year-old righthander, maddeningly inconsistent in the team’s area of great need, on Thursday was sent to the bullpen, already an area of great strength, before the opener of a four-game series at Fenway Park that could go a long way in determining whether the Yankees can overtake the Red Sox in the American League East race.

“I’ve struggled and they’ve given me ample opportunities to turn it around,” Gray said with a smile as he genially faced a media horde in the visitor’s clubhouse before the game. “I’ll be down there [beginning] Saturday and I hope to turn things around and get outs whenever my name is called.”

Given his 2018 Yankees’ track record, that might only come in non-leverage situations, at least initially, out of the Yankees’ deep pen. Gray sealed his fate with his last start on Wednesday, surrendering seven runs in 2 2⁄3 innings in the Yankees’ 7-5 loss to Baltimore. For the season he is 8-8 with a 5.56 earned-run average in 21 starts.

“I think it’s the best thing for everyone involved right now,” said Yankees manager Aaron Boone of a decision he made on Wednesday night. “Hopefully this is something for Sonny that can jump-start him a little bit. One of my messages to Sonny is: This is a really important role on our team and obviously we’re at a very important part of the season, so we really need him to go down there and get after it and hopefully provide us with quality length on those days when we need it.”

Boone did not name a replacement for Gray in the rotation, but gave indications he’s leaning toward newly acquired righthander Lance Lynn, who replaced Gray on Wednesday and delivered 4 1⁄3 scoreless innings with five strikeouts and no walks.

“Obviously Lance Lynn has been starting all year, he’s been a very consistent starter, so him being in the fold obviously makes this possible,” Boone said. “Lynn was very much in the mix.”

But when asked when Lynn would make his first Yankees start, Boone said, “I’m not quite sure.”

Regardless, Gray appeared to embrace his new role. “When you get to this point in the season, it’s about winning games,” he said. “They think at this point, today, and in the near future, the best thing for this team is for me to go down there. I’m a competitor. Whenever my name is called, I’m going to go out there and do the best I can for the team.”

Gray said he didn’t believe this demotion was permanent. “I don’t think my days as a starting pitcher in this league are over,” he said. “Whether it’s this year or next year or down the road, I truly envision myself as a starter in this league. Hopefully, when I look back on this, it’s a bump along the way and I’ll turn it into a positive.”

He admitted, however, that there have been plenty of negatives since he joined the Yankees supposedly to be a front-of-the-rotation mainstay. “I don’t think it’s been a secret that I’ve had an up-and-down time here. I don’t know any other way to say it. I’ve struggled,” Gray said. “The most difficult part has been to put it together on a consistent basis.”

He said he received encouragement from teammates and his manager, who knows about overcoming adversity in New York. “Boonie said, from his own personal experience, it can be a struggle, it can be a grind,” Gray said, “but you can have one moment that can change the narrative.”

That would be a perfect storm.