Struggling Tanaka remains in rotation — for now

The losses and the runs continue piling up.

Masahiro Tanaka seems no closer to correcting his issues on the mound than when they first surfaced nearly a month ago, but Joe Girardi still isn’t planning on removing the ace turned lia- bility from the Yankees’ rotation — even temporarily.

Wednesday, following Tanaka’s latest loss, Girardi announced the right-hander will make his next start as scheduled, which would come Sunday in The Bronx against the Orioles. Pitching coach Larry Rothschild later said Tanaka could end up be- ing pushed back one day to Monday in Anaheim to give the 28-year-old an extra day of rest, and allow him to work on his adjustments.

“It’s something we’re considering,” Rothschild said.

Either way, Tanaka will take the mound having lost his previous five starts, with a 10.72 ERA over that span.

On Tuesday night, Girardi pulled Tanaka after just 62 pitches, convinced the righthander could not recover from the five runs (three home runs) he allowed in five innings.

After the loss, Girardi said he would consider skipping Tanaka’s turn in the rotation (acknowledging Wednesday his struggles are the team’s biggest issue), but the manager ultimately opted to allow Tanaka to make his next start with the hope he will resemble an ace again, even if there isn’t a hint of evidence to suggest he will.

Tanaka, who will still have three years remaining on his $155 million contract after this season, said he hadn’t been asked whether he believes it would be beneficial for him to have his turn skipped in the rotation, and wouldn’t comment on whether he thinks it could help stop his slump.

“It’s basically up to the manager of when he wants me to throw,” Tanaka said.