River Avenue Blues

River Ave. Blues » Spring Training » Page 2

Spring Training Game Thread: The Final Home Game

by

(Presswire)

Get a good look at George M. Steinbrenner Field this afternoon. The Yankees won’t be back there until next spring. The home portion of the Grapefruit League season ends today and the Yankees only have three exhibition games remaining. Today in Tampa, tomorrow in Fort Myers, Monday at Nationals Park.

Most of the regulars are playing this afternoon after playing last night, so don’t expect them to stay in the game too long. Also, Masahiro Tanaka will be on a limited pitch count in what is essentially a tune-up start for Opening Day. Gio Gonzalez will make his Yankees debut today, so that’s something to watch, otherwise it’s business as usual and hope no one gets hurt. Here is the Blue Jays’ lineup and here are the players the Yankees will use today:

  1. LF Brett Gardner
  2. RF Aaron Judge
  3. DH Giancarlo Stanton
  4. 3B Miguel Andujar
  5. SS Gleyber Torres
  6. 2B DJ LeMahieu
  7. C Austin Romine
  8. 1B Chris Gittens
  9. CF Tyler Wade

RHP Masahiro Tanaka

Available Position Players: C Francisco Diaz, C Jorge Saez, IF Angel Aguilar, IF Oswaldo Cabrera, IF Thairo Estrada, IF Wendell Rijo, OF Isiah Gilliam, OF Tyler Hill, OF Ben Ruta, OF Zack Zehner. Diaz and Saez are still in big league camp as non-roster players. Everyone else is up from minor league camp for the day.

Available Pitchers: RHP Daniel Alvarez, RHP Braden Bristo, LHP Aroldis Chapman, LHP Phil Diehl, RHP Chad Green, RHP Jonathan Holder, RHP Brooks Kriske, LHP Gio Gonzalez, Alvarez, Bristo, Diehl, and Kriske are the extra arms from minor league camp.

Warm, sunny, and not too humid in Tampa today. Pretty much perfect baseball weather. This afternoon’s spring home finale will begin at 1:05pm ET and you can watch live on YES, MLB Network, and MLB.tv. MLB Network will be blacked out in the Yankees’ home market (you have to watch on YES) but there are no MLB.tv blackouts in Spring Training. Enjoy the game, folks.

March 22nd Spring Training Notes: Severino, Betances, Bird, Hicks, Sabathia, Roster Cuts

by

The Yankees beat the Phillies in their penultimate Spring Training home game tonight. Giancarlo Stanton led the way offensively with two loud homers. One left George M. Steinbrenner Field entirely. DJ LeMahieu had two singles and Aaron Judge had two walks. Most importantly, no one got hurt.

On the mound, Jonathan Loaisiga struck out seven and allowed two solo homers in four innings to close out his Grapefruit League season. He allowed 13 runs in 16 innings this spring. Zack Britton tossed 1.2 scoreless innings and Adam Ottavino struck out one in a scoreless frame Here are the box score and video highlights, and here are the day’s Spring Training notes:

  • Luis Severino (shoulder) will stretch out his throwing out to 90 feet tomorrow. He played catch at 60 feet the last two days and rested today. Dellin Betances (shoulder) will start throwing in the next few days. Greg Bird (elbow) will return to the lineup tomorrow after getting hit by a pitch Wednesday. “I’m just glad it’s good,” he said.  [Associated Press]
  • Aaron Hicks (back) has yet to resume baseball activities and Aaron Boone said it is “too ambitious” to expect him back on April 4th, the first day he’ll be eligible to be activated off the disabled list. The Yankees are taking it slow because they don’t want Hicks suffering a setback. [Bryan Hoch]
  • Boone reiterated the Yankees are leaning toward carrying CC Sabathia on the Opening Day roster to get his five-game suspension out of the way. That makes the most sense. Five-day suspension then ten-day injured list means the earliest Sabathia can return is April 13th. [Bryan Hoch]
  • Rex Brothers, Danny Coulombe, Phil Diehl, Clint Frazier, and Drew Hutchison were all sent to minor league camp, the Yankees announced. There are 42 players still in big league camp, but with eight guys ticketed for the injured list (or suspended) on Opening Day, there are really 34 players still in camp. Ten more cuts to get down to a 24-man roster.
  • Masahiro Tanaka is starting tomorrow and James Paxton is starting Sunday. I assume J.A. Happ will start the exhibition finale Monday. Those will be shorter tune-up starts. Gio Gonzalez is expected to pitch somewhere tomorrow. Maybe in a minor league game [Pete Caldera]

The Yankees will play their final Grapefruit League home game tomorrow afternoon. Tanaka’s starting and maybe we’ll see Gonzalez piggyback. Tomorrow’s game will be televised.

Spring Training Game Thread: Four Games To Go

by

(Presswire)

Four more games to go in the exhibition season. At this time next week, the 2019 Yankees will either be 1-0 and on their way to the 2019 World Series, or 0-1 and doomed. I can’t wait for the 162-game season or, rather, the 162 one-game seasons. That’s what it feels like sometimes with the Yankees.

Anyway, Jonathan Loaisiga will make his final Grapefruit League appearance tonight and it is a foregone conclusion at this point that he will begin the season in Triple-A. He hasn’t had a good spring and the Yankees apparently don’t want to use him in relief. Closing out the spring with a strong outing would be a welcome sight. Here is the Bryce Harper-less Phillies’ lineup and here are the players the Yankees will use today:

  1. CF Brett Gardner
  2. RF Aaron Judge
  3. LF Giancarlo Stanton
  4. DH Luke Voit
  5. C Gary Sanchez
  6. 1B DJ LeMahieu
  7. SS Troy Tulowitzki
  8. 3B Gio Urshela
  9. 2B Kyle Holder

RHP Jonathan Loaisiga

Available Position Players: C Francisco Diaz, C Jorge Saez, 1B Ryan McBroom, 1B/3B Brandon Wagner, IF Mandy Alvarez, IF Diego Castillo, IF Hoy Jun Park, OF Trey Amburgey, OF Jeff Hendrix, OF Pablo Olivares, OF Zack Zehner. Diaz and Saez are still in big league camp as non-roster players. Everyone else is up from minor league camp for the day.

Available Pitchers: RHP Braden Bristo, LHP Zack Britton, LHP Danny Coulombe, RHP David Hale, LHP Trevor Lane, RHP Adam Ottavino, RHP David Sosebee, LHP Stephen Tarpley. Bristo, Lane, and Sosebee are the extra arms up from minor league camp.

It is a nice clear and cool night in Tampa. Pretty much a perfect evening for a ballgame. Tonight’s game will begin at 6:35pm ET and you can watch live on YES and MLB.tv. There are no MLB.tv blackouts in Spring Training. Enjoy the game.

March 21st Spring Training Notes: Sevy, Bird, Wade, Frazier, Florial, Gonzalez, Sabathia, Mazzilli

by

The Yankees got thumped pretty good by the Cardinals today. Gleyber Torres had a double and a walk, Gio Urshela had a double and a single, and Miguel Andujar had a single. The B-Team couldn’t get much going on offensively. Then again, when Ryan Lavarnway leads the starting lineup in service time, what do you expect?

Domingo German gave up five runs, including three homers, in only 3.2 innings. He’d given up only three runs in 11.1 Grapefruit League innings going into today’s game. Given all the injuries, I doubt today’s outing hurt German’s chances of making the Opening Day roster. Anyway, Stephen Tarpley continued his strong spring with a scoreless inning. Here are the box score and video highlights, and here are the day’s notes from Tampa:

  • Luis Severino (shoulder) made 50 throws at 60 feet today as scheduled and everything went well. Tomorrow is a rest day. I’m not sure what comes after that. He probably has more flat ground work ahead of him before getting back up on a mound. [Bryan Hoch]
  • Apparently that pitch did not hit Greg Bird’s elbow pad yesterday. He was swollen today and sent back to Tampa for tests. “As a hitter, I don’t want to mess with his mechanics,” Aaron Boone said. X-rays and a CT scan came back negative, so all is good, at least in theory. Bird is likely to return to the lineup this weekend. [Coley Harvey]
  • Tyler Wade is fine after leaving yesterday’s game with tightness in both hits. He was examined today and is good to go for Opening Day. Clint Frazier fouled a pitch into his calf during today’s game but he’s fine too. Sore, probably, but fine. Estevan Florial (wrist) will only be in a cast three weeks, so that’s good news. [Bryan Hoch, Coley Harvey, Joel Sherman]
  • Gio Gonzalez threw a bullpen session today (here’s video) and is tentatively scheduled to pitch in a game Saturday, though it could be on the minor league side. Larry Rothschild said he “looks pretty close,” for what it’s worth. Also, Gonzalez said he added a cutter over the winter and likes where it’s at. [Erik Boland, Coley Harvey]
  • CC Sabathia threw two innings and 26 pitches in a minor league game today and everything went well. Here’s some video. Tommy Kahnle pitched in a minor league game as well, throwing 1.2 innings and 33 pitches. James Paxton and Luis Cessa threw bullpen sessions. [Bryan Hoch, Erik Boland, Kristie Ackert]
  • Billy Burns, Matt Lipka, and Ryan Lavarnway were all reassigned to minor league camp following today’s game, the Yankees announced. There goes any slim chance Burns had at making the team as Aaron Hicks’ replacement. I count 47 players still in big league camp, which is an awful lot with Opening Day one week away.
  • And finally, Lee Mazzilli is doing well after being hit in the head by a batted ball during batting practice yesterday. The Yankees say he’s in good spirits and will remain in the hospital one more night for observation. Good news. [James Wagner]

The Yankees are back home tomorrow night against the Braves. Only four more exhibition games to go. Jonathan Loaisiga is the scheduled starter tomorrow night. The game will be televised live.

Spring Training Game Thread: March Madness

by

(Presswire)

Including today, the Yankees only have five more exhibition games to play this spring. Four Grapefruit League games plus Monday’s exhibition game at Nationals Park. We’re beginning to see the light at the end of the Spring Training tunnel. Soon meaningful baseball will return.

The Yankees are on the other side of Florida to play the Cardinals today and they are using a true Spring Training lineup. The bare minimum regulars and a whole bunch of minor leaguers. That’s what happens when you play back-to-back days 200 miles away from the home base and don’t want to send guys on long bus trips. Here is the Cardinals’ lineup and here are the players the Yanks will use today:

  1. 2B Gleyber Torres
  2. 3B Miguel Andujar
  3. LF Clint Frazier
  4. 3B Gio Urshela
  5. 1B Ryan McBroom
  6. SS Kyle Holder
  7. C Ryan Lavarnway
  8. CF Matt Lipka
  9. RF Billy Burns

RHP Domingo German

Available Position Players: C Francisco Diaz, C Jorge Saez, IF Angel Aguilar, IF Thairo Estrada, IF Gosuke Katoh, OF Trey Amburgey, OF Jeff Hendrix, OF Zack Zehner. Diaz and Saez are still in big league camp as non-roster players. Everyone else is up from minor league camp.

Available Pitchers: LHP Rex Brothers, RHP Cale Coshow, LHP Phil Diehl, RHP Raynel Espinal, LHP Justin Kamplain, LHP James Reeves, LHP Anderson Severino, LHP Stephen Tarpley. Coshow, Kamplain, Reeves, and Severino are the extra arms from minor league camp.

It is cloudy with no rain in the forecast in Jupiter today. Today’s game will begin at 1:05pm ET and you can watch live on MLB.tv anywhere and FOX Sports Midwest in the Cardinals’ home market. There is no YES Network or MLB Network broadcast today. Enjoy the game.

March 20th Spring Training Notes: Sevy, Wade, Montgomery, Chapman, Happ, Sabathia, Mazzilli

by

The Yankees dropped this afternoon’s game to the Astros. It’s their first loss in nearly two weeks. Jonathan Holder threw two scoreless innings as the opener but did allow a lot of hard contact. The wind knocked some balls down and his defense made some nice plays. It was a deceptive two scoreless innings. Nestor Cortes allowed one unearned run in three innings and Joe Harvey allowed a run in two innings. Holder was the only projected big leaguer to pitch.

The shorthanded lineup managed only four hits on the afternoon. Gary Sanchez and Gleyber Torres each doubled and Luke Voit had two singles. That’s it. Gleyber drew two walks and Bird drew a walk and was hit by a pitch. Got him square in the elbow guard, fortunately. “When does it ever hit the pad, right?” he joked to Coley Harvey afterward. Here are the box score and video highlights, and here are the day’s notes from Tampa:

  • Luis Severino (shoulder) played catch today for the first time since being shut down with inflammation. He made 25 throws at 60 feet and felt good physical despite being out of sync mechanically. “I just feel a little bit off because I’ve been out for two weeks. Just in my whole body when I threw in the outfield. The mechanics, all that stuff,” he said. Severino will make 50 throws tomorrow, then rest Friday. [Marly Rivera, Bryan Hoch]
  • Tyler Wade exited this afternoon’s game with tightness in his hips and is heading back to Tampa for evaluation. He said it was precautionary and thinks it’s because he fell asleep on the bus in a weird position. “A lot of guys are hurt right now so I didn’t want to keep pushing it,” he said. [James Wagner, Lindsey Adler, David Lennon]
  • Jordan Montgomery (Tommy John surgery) has graduated from flat ground throwing. He made 25 pitches from a half-mound yesterday. How may more bullpen sessions? “Nineteen more,” he said. What happens after that? “Not sure,” he said. It is a long and lonely rehab road. [George King]
  • Gio Gonzalez will throw a bullpen session tomorrow and declared himself “ready to go” for the regular season. We’ll see whether the Yankees agree. Gonzalez added the Yankees were the only team that made him an offer over the winter. Sees normal. [Brendan Kuty, Erik Boland]
  • Aroldis Chapman threw two innings in a minor league game today and J.A. Happ threw a 33-pitch simulated game. We’ve reached the “short tune-up outing” point of Spring Training. Hooray for that. CC Sabathia will pitch in a minor league game tomorrow. [Kristie Ackert, George King]
  • Guest instructor Lee Mazzilli was hit in the head by a batted ball during batting practice today. Ouch. He was taken to the hospital and admitted for tests. Hope he’s okay. [George King]

Only four more Grapefruit League games to go! The Yankees have a road game against the Cardinals tomorrow afternoon. Domingo German is the scheduled starter. No opener this time. Tomorrow’s game will be televised live.

Spring Training Game Thread: Another Opener

by

(Presswire)

Over the last few weeks Aaron Boone has gone from “you don’t envision that” to “I would expect there is a good chance” when asked about possibly using an opener this season. Due to injuries, something that wasn’t in the cards is now a very real possibility. Chad Green opened yesterday’s game — “I think I warmed up a little bit too early. That will be something I have to figure out,” he said to George King — and today it is Jonathan Holder’s turn.

With Dellin Betances out, the Yankees will need Green in the late innings maybe a little more than expected out of the gate, making Holder the most obvious candidate to be an opener. Something tells me Stephen Tarpley might get a shot at opening a game before the Grapefruit League lets out as well. We’ll see. Here is the Astros’ lineup and here are the players the Yankees sent on the 200-mile bus trip to West Palm Beach for today’s game:

  1. SS Gleyber Torres
  2. 3B Miguel Andujar
  3. 1B Luke Voit
  4. DH Greg Bird
  5. C Gary Sanchez
  6. RF Clint Frazier
  7. CF Tyler Wade
  8. 2B Thairo Estrada
  9. LF Billy Burns

RHP Jonathan Holder

Available Position Players: C Francisco Diaz, C Ryan Lavarnway, C Jorge Saez, 1B Ryan McBroom, IF Angel Aguilar, IF Thairo Estrada, IF Kyle Holder, IF Gosuke Katoh, IF Gio Urshela, OF Trey Amburgey, OF Jeff Hendrix, OF Matt Lipka, OF Zack Zehner. McBroom, Aguilar, Estrada, Katoh, Amburgey, Hendrix, and Zehner are up from minor league camp for the road trip.

Available Pitchers: LHP Rex Brothers, LHP Nestor Cortes, RHP Cale Coshow, LHP Danny Coulombe, LHP Phil Diehl, RHP Raynel Espinal, RHP Joe Harvey, RHP Domingo German, LHP Justin Kamplain, LHP James Reeves, LHP Anderson Severino, LHP Stephen Tarpley. Coshow, Harvey, Kamplain, Reeves, and (not related to Luis) Severino are the extra arms up from minor league camp.

The Yankees are on the other side of Florida today and tomorrow, so many of those players are staying overnight rather than making the long bus trip back and forth. I’m not sure who’s coming off the bench or out of the bullpen today. I do know German is starting tomorrow though, so we won’t see him this afternoon. The rest will be a surprise.

It is kinda cloudy, kinda warm, kinda humid, and kinda windy in West Palm Beach today. There is no rain in the forecast though, and that’s all that matters. 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.