River Avenue Blues

Spring Training Game Thread: Game Two

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(Presswire)

Now that the pomp and circumstance of the Grapefruit League opener is in the rear-view mirror, it’s time to get down to the nitty-gritty. The day in, day out grind of baseball. At this time of the year, the focus is on preparing for the regular season, not securing wins. Either way, it’s baseball, and I love it and I missed it.

What to watch today in the Yankees’ second spring game? Well, today will be our first chance to see DJ LeMahieu in pinstripes spring blues, and I’m pretty sure righty Trevor Stephan is scheduled to pitch at some point. I ranked him as the 13th best prospect in the farm system and Aaron Boone recently singled him out as a young player who’s impressed in camp. Should be fun. Here is the Rays’ lineup and here is the Yankees’ lineup:

  1. 2B DJ LeMahieu
  2. LF Tyler Wade
  3. 1B Luke Voit
  4. DH Clint Frazier
  5. C Austin Romine
  6. CF Estevan Florial
  7. RF Trey Amburgey
  8. SS Thairo Estrada
  9. 3B Kyle Holder

RHP Jonathan Loaisiga

Available Position Players: C Kellin Deglan, C Ryan Lavarnway, C Jorge Saez, 1B Mike Ford, IF Oswaldo Cabrera, IF Diego Castillo, IF Gosuke Katoh, IF L.J. Mazzilli, OF Billy Burns, OF Matt Lipka, OF Ben Ruta, OF Zack Zehner. Cabrera, Castillo, Katoh, Mazzilli, Ruta, and Zehner are all up from minor league camp for the road trip.

Available Pitchers: RHP Daniel Alvarez, RHP David Hale, RHP Brady Lail, LHP James Reeves, RHP Adonis Rosa, LHP Anderson Severino, RHP David Sosebee, RHP Trevor Stephan, LHP Stephan Tarpley. Alvarez, Reeves, Rosa, Severino, and Sosebee are the extra arms from minor league camp.

The Yankees are on the road in Port Charlotte this afternoon and it is another hot and humid day on Florida’s Gulf Coast. It’s cloudy too but there’s no rain in the forecast. Today’s game will begin at 1:05pm ET and you can watch live on MLB Network and MLB.tv. MLB Network will show the game in the Yankees’ home market and there are no MLB.tv blackouts in Spring Training. Enjoy the ballgame.

The Puzzling Middle Infield Picture

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(Presswire)

Even without signing Manny Machado and even with Didi Gregorius sidelined, recovering from Tommy John Surgery, the Yankees middle infield is already pretty crowded. There’s returning youngster Gleyber Torres, as well as free agent additions Troy Tulowitzki and DJ LeMahieu. We should also throw an honorable mention towards Tyler Wade, since he’s nominally a middle infielder. With this many guys for two of the four up-the-middle positions on a baseball team, there are many options for deployment. The one the Yankees are opting for is puzzling. Per this tweet by Lindsey Adler, the Yankees are having Tulo work exclusively as a shortstop this spring. Plans can change, of course, but this one isn’t great for reasons both offensive and defensive.

Offensively, the problem starts with Tulowitzki himself. The next time he takes the plate in an official Major League game, it’ll be the first time he’s done so since 2017, when he was an 79 wRC+ hitter in 260 plate appearances across 66 games. He was last a league average hitter in 2016 when he posted a 104 wRC+ in 544 PA in 131 games; he was also league average in 2015 at a 101 wRC+. However he does in Spring Training, there’s going to be a steep relearning curve for him when the real action starts on March 28. While slow starts happen, they’re different for a guy who just missed a year due to injury and hasn’t been decent since 2016.

LeMahieu also offers a potential problem offensively. I may be a touch alarmist here since I’m not exactly sold on this acquisition, but it’s worth noting that despite playing the plurality of his career’s home games in Coors Field, DJLM has only one above average offensive season. Add that to switching leagues and teams and it’s not hard to imagine a rough going at the start. The Yankees signed him because they think his batted ball profile will play in Yankee Stadium, and that’s great, but is that really what you wanna pin your hopes and $24M guaranteed on?

This leaves Gleyber Torres, ironically, as potentially the most offensively reliable of this middle infield troika as he’s not coming off an injury and isn’t switching leagues or teams. Still, he’s a second year player who could easily have a sophomore slump and it’s a lot to expect of a guy–even if these are my expectations–to be the best out of these three players.

On the other side of the ball, the Yankees are going to have a guy who’s recovering from heel surgery play shortstop, the most demanding infield position that side of the mound. That’s not a good look in and of itself, let alone with Miguel Andujar playing next to him, who has plenty of defensive issues to work out. Additionally, LeMahieu’s definite value comes from his great glove at second base…where Gleyber Torres will be getting most of the action. Not only are the Yankees putting a potentially compromised player at shortstop, they’re also going to be putting a Gold Glove caliber second baseman at….not second base most of the time. The smarter play is probably to have Tulowitzki as the backup with Torres at short and LeMahieu at second. But, really, counting on Tulowitzki for anything is probably a fool’s errand.

Bringing in LeMahieu afterwards brings the entire Tulowitzki signing into question, even as a low-risk move because of how muddled it makes things. Surely, though, the Yankees have thought of this if I have and have a plan. I still have my doubts. If (when?) Tulo gets hurt and it becomes wholly necessary to move Torres to short, thus allowing LeMahieu to play second full time, this all looks a bit better, since elite defense at second is nothing to scoff at, even if the player leaves a lot to be desired offensively.

With this puzzling middle infield picture, the Yankees have made their bed. Hopefully, it’s more comfortable than I’ve made it out to be.

Feb. 23rd Spring Training Notes: Severino, Happ, Bird, Voit, Frazier, Paxton, Tanaka

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(Presswire)

The Yankees opened their exhibition schedule with loss to the Red Sox this afternoon. Gleyber Torres swatted a home run (video), plus Aaron Hicks, Greg Bird, Tyler Wade, Matt Lipka, and Trey Amburgey all banged doubles. All legit doubles too. No bloops that landed on the line. Bird drove one off the wall the other way, Hicks hit one over the center fielder’s head, and Wade and Lipka found the right-center field gap. Ryan McBroom hit a home run as well. Bird added a single, as did Clint Frazier.

Nestor Cortes got the start and had a good first inning and not-so-good second and third innings. He was charged with four runs in 2.2 innings, though Drew Hutchison had a hand in that. He inherited two runners from Cortes and gave up a three-run homer. Joe Harvey, who ostensibly has a chance at an Opening Day bullpen spot, got roughed up for two runs on three hits in two-thirds of an inning. Won’t help his cause. Here are the box score and video highlights, and here are today’s notes from camp:

  • Back in Tampa, Luis Severino and J.A. Happ were among those to throw a simulated game. Here’s video of Severino vs. Luke Voit, Severino vs. Troy Tulowitzki, and Happ vs. Aaron Judge. Simulated game today means we can rule out Severino and Happ pitching in a spring game for a few days.
  • Aaron Boone reiterated Luke Voit and Bird won’t platoon at first base. It’ll be one or the other. Boone added he believes Bird is the better defensive first baseman (I agree with that), but said Voit has made strides this spring. [Brendan Kuty, Coley Harvey]
  • Boone also singled out Frazier for his improved defense. He’s been working with the outfield coaches early this spring. “I like today, for example, him backing up a throw in the infield. That’s just kind of a heady, into the game, little thing that you like to see out of the young player,” said Boone. [Brendan Kuty]
  • The upcoming rotation: Jonathan Loaisiga on Sunday, James Paxton on Monday, and Masahiro Tanaka on Tuesday. All three games will be televised live. No word on the rotation beyond Tuesday yet. [Bryan Hoch]

The Grapefruit League season continues tomorrow against the Rays. Not sure who will be on the trip other than Loaisiga and Frazier. Frazier’s tentatively scheduled to DH. That’s another 1:05pm ET game. MLB Network and MLB.tv will both air it live. No blackouts again.

Update: Bryan Hoch has tomorrow’s travel roster. DJ LeMahieu, Luke Voit, Austin Romine, Estevan Florial, and Trevor Stephan are among those making the trip.

Spring Training Game Thread: Baseball Returns

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(Presswire)

At long last, that slog of an offseason is (kinda) over and baseball has returned. The Yankees begin their 32-game exhibition schedule this afternoon with the Grapefruit League opener on the road against the Red Sox. The ALDS wounds are still fresh, but trust me, no one on the roster is thinking revenge today. Not on February 23rd.

The Yankees sent a skeleton crew on the two-hour bus trip south to Fort Myers. Only three no-doubt big league position players made the trip and we won’t see a single member of the projected Opening Day pitching staff this afternoon. That’s alright. Part of the fun in Spring Training is seeing players we don’t usually get to see during the regular season.

Two things to watch this afternoon: One, Miguel Andujar’s defense at third base, and two, Clint Frazier’s return from last year’s concussion issues. One game won’t tell us much — at this point I am in “just please no one get hurt” mode — though this will be our first chance to Andujar’s new footwork and healthy Frazier for the first time really since 2017.

Also, the new 20-second pitch clock will be in use today. We still don’t know whether it’ll be used during the regular season (bet on it), but MLB wants to give players and umpires a chance to get used to it in case it is implemented, so they’re using in Spring Training. I watched the A’s vs. Mariners yesterday and barely noticed it. Today we’ll see the Yankees use it for the first time.

Neither AL East rival is giving the other a look at their best players today. The Red Sox are also using a lineup loaded with minor leaguers today. Here is their lineup and here is the lineup the Yankees will use this afternoon, at least for the first few innings:

  1. CF Aaron Hicks
  2. 2B Gleyber Torres
  3. 3B Miguel Andujar
  4. 1B Greg Bird
  5. LF Clint Frazier
  6. DH Mike Ford
  7. C Kyle Higashioka
  8. SS Tyler Wade
  9. RF Matt Lipka

LHP Nestor Cortes

Available Position Players: C Kellin Deglan, C Francisco Diaz, C Jorge Saez, IF Angel Aguilar, IF Thairo Estrada, IF Kyle Holder, OF Trey Amburgey, IF Gosuke Katoh, 1B/OF Ryan McBroom, OF Estevan Florial, OF Jeff Hendrix. Aguilar, Katoh, McBroom, and Hendrix are up from minor league camp for the road trip. Minor league Spring Training isn’t officially open yet, so those guys have presumably been working out at the minor league complex across the street the last few days/weeks.

Available Pitchers: LHP Rex Brothers, RHP Cale Coshow, LHP Danny Coulombe, LHP Phil Diehl, RHP Joe Harvey, RHP Drew Hutchison, RHP Brady Lail, RHP David Sosebee, RHP Greg Weissert. Sosebee and Weissert are extra arms from minor league camp.

It is hot and humid in Fort Myers today. Mid-80s with humidity hovering around 80%. It’ll be a sticky day at the park for everyone in attendance. Today’s game will begin at 1:05pm ET and you can watch live on MLB Network and MLB.tv. MLB Network will show the game in the Yankees home market and there are no MLB.tv blackouts in Spring Training. Enjoy the game, folks. Baseball’s back.

The Yankees are Back, and There’s Plenty of Reason to Cheer

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More of this, please (Danielle Parhizkaran/NorthJersey.com)

The Yankees will play their first game of 2019 later this afternoon against the Boston Red Sox, and even though it’s only a meaningless Spring Training game, it’s still Yankee baseball. It’s been a slow, tortuous offseason—and it’s obviously not over, with Bryce Harper, Dallas Keuchel and Craig Kimbrel still unsigned, the latter two with zero known suitors—but the Yankees are back. Even though this has been an atypically frustrating Yankee offseason, that should not stifle our excitement for the coming season.

That’s not to say that the season will erase a number of troubling trends across the sport more broadly, like reduced spending, reticence to improve via free agency and meaningless worship of future financial flexibility. It plainly will not. The Yankees are major contributors to those issues and there is no use pretending otherwise simply to justify our fandom.

But with that said, fans of 29 other franchises suffered through the same arduous free agency process—and very few of them have as much cause for optimism as Yankee fans. Let’s break down just a few important reasons why.

1. They’re Going to Tear the Cover Off the Ball

The Yanks set the MLB record for most home runs in a season last year with 267, and the 2019 team might be locked and loaded with even more power than last year’s version. After all, the Yanks only got 45 combined home runs from Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez in 2018, and as long as the duo avoids significant injury, they’re a lock to surpass that figure in 2019. But even if there is no such thing as #TooManyHomers, there is no denying that the Yankee offense will be much more than just a bunch of home runs.

Just consider their projected Opening Day lineup, with ZiPS fWAR projections in parentheses:

  1. Aaron Hicks (3.2)
  2. Aaron Judge (4.6)
  3. Giancarlo Stanton (4.6)
  4. Gary Sanchez (2.5)
  5. Miguel Andújar (1.6)
  6. Gleyber Torres (2.6)
  7. Luke Voit (1.9)
  8. DJ LeMahieu (2.2)
  9. Brett Gardner (1.5)

There are few teams in baseball, if any, that can run out a lineup like that—and that’s without even Didi Gregorius’ bat in the front half. This is a high-powered offense that should expect a full season of Judge, a much more effective and healthy Gary Sanchez. It has one of baseball’s best center fielders in Aaron Hicks, as exciting a young group in Andújar and Torres as any (not to mention Clint Frazier), a bonafide superstar talent in Giancarlo Stanton and might even get production out of first base for the first time since 2015. Advanced statistics and projection systems absolutely love Luke Voit—take them for what you will, but it suggests that the position might not be a black hole.

The Yankees are going to hit, and they’re going to feast on pitching from teams (including some in their division) that simply aren’t trying. Other teams will dread coming to the Bronx and having to work through that lineup—and very few will do so effectively.

2. Their Pitching Staff Will Be Among Baseball’s Finest

I’ve written about this before, but despite all the complaining by Yankee fans and executives, the Yankees have one of the best pitching staffs in the entire league. Possibly the very best, if we look at the data. The acquisition of James Paxton gives the Yanks another high-powered swing-and-miss arm at the top of the rotation, Luis Severino has been one of the game’s most dominant pitchers over the last two years (even counting his horrible second half, which seems to be all anyone remembers) and Masahiro Tanaka is much more reliable than given credit for.

But it’s the back-end of the rotation where the Yankees shine, and that’s because they’ve filled a gap filled by AAA players last year with capable veterans in J.A. Happ and CC Sabathia. Underwhelming, perhaps, but it’s difficult, if not impossible, to find two arms more reliable than those two at the back end of a rotation. These guys are good, and it seems like that’s been forgotten.

Their rotation ought to look like this, again with ZiPS fWAR predictions in parentheses:

  1. Luis Severino (4.5)
  2. James Paxton (3.2)
  3. Masahiro Tanaka (3.1)
  4. J.A. Happ (2.9)
  5. CC Sabathia (2.1)

There’s always a need for more pitching, and this rotation could quickly look different with a few injuries—but that’s true of 29 other teams as well. This rotation is extremely good and projects to be among the league’s finest. Seriously. Poke around other rosters and look at their rotations. You’ll appreciate the Yanks a bit more.

And then there’s the bullpen, which projects to be one of the best bullpens in baseball history—by fWAR, last year’s was the best bullpen in baseball history). Here’s how that shakes out, sorted by projected fWAR from highest-to-lowest:

  1. Chad Green (1.7)
  2. Dellin Betances (1.4)
  3. Aroldis Chapman (1.3)
  4. Adam Ottavino (0.9)
  5. Jonathan Loaisiga (0.9)
  6. Jonathan Holder (0.8)
  7. Zack Britton (0.8)

The Yanks have several capable options to fill the 8th spot (Mike King, Domingo German, Luis Cessa) and that is downright frightening for the opposition.  There are no shortage of arms to fill high-leverage innings—if anything, quite the opposite—and most all of them feature high-powered, high-spin rate pitches with serious swing-and-miss capability. Aaron Boone has baseball’s deepest, most talented relief corps in the league by a wide margin. This bullpen will be scary good, complementing an excellent rotation.

All of this adds up to a simple if neglected truth: the Yankees will be hard to hit. Fans and commenters forget and obscure that simple reality, but it’s true.  Say it with me: the Yankees will be hard to hit.

3. They Are Better Than Last Year

Add all of this up, and what you get is a team that is projected to win 96-99 games by ZiPS (PECOTA similarly projects 96 wins). Projections are fickle and not to be taken literally, of course, but the point is that the Yanks are talented, young and poised to make a serious run.

The 2018 Yankees won 100 games for the first time since the 2009 World Series winners. This year’s team may not repeat that—it’s really hard to win 100 games!—but I don’t think there’s any doubt that this team is better than last year. It’s paradoxical in an offseason marked by frustration over the Yanks’ half-hearted pursuit of Manny Machado and Patrick Corbin, let alone their non-existent pursuit of Bryce Harper, but the Yankees were one of only a handful of teams that actually did anything this offseason, adding a legitimate stud to the rotation and filling out depth for one of baseball’s elite groups.

Again, the Yankees could and should have been even better—perhaps much better—and some moves will bother us for a long time (seriously, signing Tulo/DJLM instead of Machado is going to stick with me for decades). That’s a real cause for frustration, but that should not dilute the fact that this Yankees team is improved and one of only a handful with a real chance to win the World Series.

2019 is the 10th anniversary of the celebrated 2009 squad, and there can be no denying it: this is the best Yankee team since. I am pretty damn excited to watch them this year—and you should be, too.

Feb. 22nd Spring Training Notes: Hicks, LeMahieu, Frazier

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While the Padres were busy introducing Manny Machado at their Spring Training complex in Arizona earlier today, the Yankees held their annual spring team-bonding event in Tampa. Celebrity hypnotist motivational speaker Ricky Kalmon was the guest. Here’s a photo and here are today’s camp notes:

  • Aaron Hicks confirmed he’s discussed an extension with the Yankees and said “of course” when asked whether the A.J. Pollock deal is a good starting point for contract talks. “When center fielders get contracts, of course I’m going to get excited about that,” he added. Pollock signed a four-year, $60M contract with opt-outs and escalators and all that. [Randy Miller]
  • Sounds like the Yankees will be a little more aggressive on the bases this year. “I think that’s one of those areas where even with guys that don’t necessarily run a lot, there are a lot of times that come up where there’s some low-hanging fruit there to where you can grab a base,” said Aaron Boone, referring to pitchers with slow deliveries and catchers with weak arms. [Randy Miller]
  • Not surprisingly, Boone said he envisions DJ LeMahieu being the backup first baseman. That was the plan when they signed him. LeMahieu has played 13 innings at first base in his big league career and none since 2013. This is notable because it indicates the Yankees do not plan to carry both Luke Voit and Greg Bird on the roster. [Bryan Hoch]
  • There are no restrictions on Clint Frazier this spring following last year’s concussion issues. In fact, Frazier will make both road trips this weekend and is tentatively scheduled to start both games. He’ll be in left field tomorrow and at DH on Sunday. “He’s ready to go,” said Boone. [Coley Harvey]
  • Nestor Cortes is starting tomorrow’s Grapefruit League opener. Frazier, Hicks, Miguel Andujar, Greg Bird, Phil Diehl, Estevan Florial, Kyle Higashioka, Brady Lail, Gleyber Torres, and Tyler Wade are all making the road trip. [Bryan Hoch]

The Yankees will be on the road to take on the Red Sox in tomorrow’s Grapefruit League opener. It is a 1pm ET start and the game will air live on MLB Network and MLB.tv. MLB Network will show the game in the Yankees’ home market and there are no MLB.tv blackouts in Spring Training.

Friday Links: Machado, Moustakas, Pitch Clock, London Series

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Manny heading to the Left Coast. (Harry How/Getty)

The first Grapefruit League game is less than 24 hours away. Thank goodness for that. As for the Yankees making further additions, it’s possible, but don’t expect anything big. “We’ve been offering (minor league contracts) out like Chiclets,” Brian Cashman told Joel Sherman. How exciting. Anyway, here are some notes.

Yankees would’ve gone to $240M for Machado?

The Yankees never did make Manny Machado a formal offer before he signed with the Padres, but, according to Jon Heyman, during their December meeting the Yankees indicated they were willing to offer him $220M to $240M. A lowball offer, clearly. They wanted Machado on their terms and at a discount or not at all. My guess is that $220M to $240M would’ve been spread across eight years rather than ten, and included opt-outs and all that good stuff.

Bryce Harper signing a short-term contract never seemed all that likely and the Machado contract all but guarantees it won’t happen. I have to think Harper and Scott Boras are licked their chops in anticipation of negotiating with the desperate as hell Phillies. I know it’s not going to happen but dammit I can’t help but hold out hope the Yankees are laying in the weeds here ready to swoop in a la Mark Teixeira years ago. Would be cool. Oh well. Maybe the Yankees will sign a 26-year-old superstar next offseason.

Yankees “briefly” considered Moustakas

According to Andy Martino, the Yankees only “briefly” considered making a run at Mike Moustakas earlier this offseason. Moustakas returned to the Brewers on a one-year deal worth $10M guaranteed earlier this week. The Yankees had interest in Moustakas as a first baseman at the trade deadline last year, before he went to the Brewers and before they acquired Luke Voit. Can’t get mad about how that series of events turned out.

Moustakas, 30, hit .251/.315/.459 (105 wRC+) with 28 home runs last season. He’s a lefty with a tendency to pull the ball in the air, so he would’ve fit nicely in Yankee Stadium. The Brewers are apparently going to play Moustakas at second base. The Yankees could’ve done that and shifted Gleyber Torres to short. Or they could’ve just put Moustakas at third base, moved Miguel Andujar to DH, and put Giancarlo Stanton in left field. Eh, whatever.

Pitch clock coming to Spring Training

You will see a pitch clock when the Yankees open their spring schedule tomorrow. Earlier this week commissioner Rob Manfred told Mike Fitzpatrick a 20-second pitch clock will be used during Cactus League and Grapefruit League games. No decision has been made about the regular season yet. Manfred and MLB want to give players and umpires a chance to get used to the pitch clock just case it is used during the regular season, so we’ll see it this spring. There will be warnings at first before ball-strike penalties take effect depending whether the pitcher or hitter is late.

“We’re still hopeful that we’re going to make an agreement with (the MLBPA) on pace-of-play initiatives. I just think that whether it’s by agreement or otherwise, the only prudent course for us at this point is to be in a position to proceed if in fact we have an agreement or decide to do it,” said Manfred. Manfred can unilaterally implement a 20-second pitch clock this year and it sounds like he will do exactly that if MLB and the MLBPA are unable to agree to a new set of pace-of-play rules. I am pro-pitch clock. Let’s do this. You won’t even notice it’s there in a few weeks.

MLB cracking down on high-tech sign-stealing

As expected, MLB is cracking down on high-tech sign-stealing following incidents in the postseason last year, reports Tom Verducci. An Astros employee was caught recording the Indians dugout during the ALDS last year, though the employee claimed he was monitoring Cleveland to make sure they weren’t stealing signs, and was later cleared by MLB following an investigation. There was also the Apple watch incident with the Red Sox two years ago.

According to Verducci, teams are now banned from using non-broadcast cameras from foul pole to foul pole in the outfield, and there are tighter restrictions on in-house video. Specifically, dugout and clubhouse monitors will be on an eight-second delay, and a designated official will monitor communication between the video replay room and the dugout. Penalties include loss of draft picks and international bonus money. There are no rules against stealing signs! MLB just doesn’t want teams using high-tech gadgets to do it. Given how much technology is in the game today, this was an inevitable and necessary step.

Yankees, Red Sox will wear home uniforms in London

The Yankees and Red Sox will both wear their home uniforms during the London Series later this summer, reports Pete Abraham. The Red Sox will be the home team for the two games but the Yankees will be out there in pinstripes. Why? Marketing. Can’t send your marquee franchise overseas in an effort to grow the game and not have them wear their iconic uniform, you know? Imagine sending the Yankees overseas and making them wear their road grays. Good grief. Anyway, the London Series will be played at London Stadium on June 29th and 30th.