Yankees' Michael Pineda could be sidelined until June or later

Once again, uncertainty surrounds Yankees right-hander Michael Pineda. (Getty Images)

Yankees right-hander Michael Pineda, the gifted young hurler whom they acquired from Seattle last winter in exchange for gifted young slugger Jesus Montero, underwent surgery in May to repair a torn labrum. Pineda was initially expected back in spring training, however irrationally optimistic such a timetable was. Now, Yankees GM Brian Cashman says Pineda is not expected back until well into the 2013 season.

"We have to keep him off our radar for now," Cashman, appearing on Ian O'Connor's ESPN New York radio show, said of Pineda. "We're talking June of next year ... the second half of next year."

That's hardly a surprise, given the usual recovery times attached to such a major procedure. The real question is whether Pineda can recapture the promise that he showed as a 22-year-old rookie in 2011. Following a major shoulder injury such as this, nothing is to be assumed.

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