S.T. Games 22 and 23. Yanks hit 3 HR in each game, win both. Hicks to miss Opening Day.

Before we get to Sunday’s games, some news.

Kyle Higashioka sent down to AAA SWB.

Aaron Hicks will miss Opening Day. He got a second cortisone shot for his back.

This means, for a while (a week?) that Greg Bird AND Luke Voit could be on the opening day roster. Stanton would play LF, Gardner CF, Judge RF. Bird or Voit 1B, the other DH.

Rumors are the Yanks have made an offer to Gio Gonzalez, but are probably far apart. Being over the cap already, I can’t see the offer being substantive, and Gio made $12MM last year. My guess is that the Yanks probably offered half of that to cover themselves in case Severino has more issues and cannot come back in May.

Ok, the Yanks won BOTH split squad games today, hitting 3 HR in each game. So they are 13-6-4 for spring training.

Game 22. Yanks beat Phillies, 7-3.

Troy Tulowitzki 2 hits, a 2-run HR.
Greg Bird solo HR.
Gleyber Torres solo HR.
Tyler Wade 2 hits, 2 SB
Matt Lipka 2 for 2, 2 SB

Great outing for James Paxton. Not so for Chad Green.

Paxton 4 1/3, 1 R, 0 H, 2 W, 4 K.
Green (BS)  2/3 IP, 2 R, 2 R, 3 H, 0 W, 0 K.
Betances 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K.
Kahnle (H) 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K.
Coulombe 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K.
A. Severino 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 2 W, 2 K.

Game 23. Yanks beat Orioles, 5-3.

Jonathan Loaisiga needed a good outing to keep up with Luis Cessa and Domingo German as far as filling in for Luis Severino and CC Sabathia in April. He provided it.

Kyle Holder 2 hits, RBI
Miguel Andujar solo HR.
Luke Voit 2 -run HR (the competition remains good and fierce between him and Bird).
Higashioka 2 hits.
Zack Zehner 2 hits, solo HR.

Loaisiga 3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 W, 0 K.
Hale (H) 3 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 1 W, 1 K.
Hutchison (H) 2 IP, 2 R, 4 H, 1 W, 0 K. Gave up 1 HR
Brothers (S) 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 2 K.

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S.T. Game 20. Yanks rip Red Sox, 14-1. Injury updates.

First, from MLB.com”

Luis Severino, Aaron Hicks and CC Sabathia, Yankees

Although Severino is scheduled to resume throwing March 20, general manager Brian Cashman said Friday that the right-hander won’t be ready to pitch in a Major League game until May 1 at the earliest.

Hicks, who has been sidelined for most of March by lower-back stiffness, is expected to join Severino on the injured list at the start of the season. The outfielder will likely be healthy by Opening Day, but he may need to log more at-bats and defensive reps in Minor League games before he’s up to speed.

The Yankees expect Sabathia will be ready to pitch at some point in April and may even carry him on the Opening Day roster so he can serve a five-game suspension from last season. The left-hander is a bit behind schedule after undergoing right knee surgery in October and an angioplasty in December

Now with Severino and CC both out, the Yanks need pitchers like Luis Cessa, Domingo German and Jonathan Loaisiga to step up while Seve and CC are down.

As of now, it appears Cessa and German are winning the battle over Loaisiga. Cessa has been great this spring, and today German was as well, pitching four scoreless innings in a 14-1 rout of the Red Sox.

Brett Gardner drove in a run and made a fine defensive play.

Aaron Judge had 2 hits, including a 3-run HR.

Prospect Trey Amburgey drove in 2 runs.

Luke Voit drove in 2 runs. If Hicks can’t make Opening Day, then maybe there is a way that Bird and Voit both make the team. For a while, anyway.

Chris Gittens and Miguel Andujar each had 2 hits and an RBI.

D.J. LeMahieu 2 RBI

German 4 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 1 W, 6 K.
Chapman 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K.
Holder 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 0 K.
Ottavino 1 IP, 1 R, 3 H, 0 W, 0 K.
Tarpley 2 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 3 K. Don’t sleep on him.
Reeves 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 0 K.

The Yanks are 10-6-4 this spring.

 

 

Yanks send Farquhar to minor league camp. Adams, Harvey, too.

Danny Farquhar’s comeback story will continue, but at the Yanks’ minor league camp.

Farquhar, who suffered a brain hemorrhage pitching for the White Sox last April, and who then missed the rest of the 2018 season, is attempting to come back from that near-fatal incident.

He’ll now have to it at minor league camp since the Yanks sent him down.

The road back wont’ be easy, but it’s a story to root for.

The Yanks also sent down Chance Adams and Joe Harvey, both of them to AAA SWB.

Meanwhile, Aaron Hicks got a cortisone shot for his back.

 

S.T. Game 11. Yanks fall 9-5. Besides Seve, CC to miss start of season too. Would Yanks use “opener”?

The Yanks lost to the Cardinals, 9-5 today, to drop the spring training record to 5-5-1.

We know that Seve will miss time, and now the Yanks have said that because of the knee surgery and stent put in, that CC will begin the season on the injured list. Remember that once activated, CC has a five-game suspension to serve.

So two of the five starters will NOT be starting the season. As of now, GM Brian Cashman wants to plug from within, meaning no Dallas Keuchel, Gio Gonzalez or Edwin Jackson.

Gonzalez has been rumored to be someone the Yanks might consider, but he’d have to agree to a bullpen move once Severino and CC are ready.

I like Loaisiga, and he shows great potential to step in as a spot starter now, and to replace CC in the rotation in 2020, but he is a raw talent. 5 out of his 7 outs today K’s, but gave up 5 Runs in 2 1/3.

With both Severino and CC out, we are looking at Cessa, German and/or Loaisiga filling those two spots unless the Yanks sign someone.

Loaisiga (Johnny Lasagna) had mixed results today. Good: 5 K in 2 1/3 IP. Bad: 5 runs given up.

Austin Romine had a 3-run HR today, Gleyber Torres 2 hits. Prospect Trey Amburgey had 2 RBI.

Loaisiga (L) 2 1/3 IP, 4 R, 3 H, 2 W, 5 K. Gave up 1 HR
Harvey (BS) 2/3 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 0 W, 1 K.
Chapman 1 IP, 0 R , 1 H, 0 W, 1 K.
Coulombe 1 1/3 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 1 W, 1 K.
Diehl 1 1/3 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 0 W, 2 K.
Coshow 2/3 IP, 2 R, 3 H, 0 W, 0 K. Gave up 1 HR
Reeves 1 2/3 IP, 0 R , 1 H, 0 W, 1 K.

With Seve out until maybe late April, and CC out until about that time, could the Yanks, with their strong bullpen, consider an “opener” for a game or two in April?

Steven Wright of Boston drew an 80 game suspension (and would miss the postseason) for HGH ban. Hmm, why would a knuckleballer need HGH?

Jacoby Ellsbury (the Nowhere Man) is expected to join the Yanks in Tampa around March 17.

Hicks is still recovering from back pain.

The Yanks sent Domingo Acevedo down to Trenton, and sent Trevor Stephan and Brady Lail to minor league camp.

 

 

 

Yanks sign Hicks to 7-yr. extension. Paxton starts today, Tanaka tomorrow.

From MLB.com:

Outfielder Aaron Hicks has agreed to a seven-year, $70 million extension with the Yankees, a source has told MLB.com. The team, which has not confirmed the report, is expected to announce the extension later today. The deal was first reported by Jack Curry of YES Network.

James Paxton starts today for the Yanks (on YES network) and Masahiro Tanaka tomorrow.

UPDATE: Today’s afternoon game will be broadcast on the MLB network at 8 PM

S.T. Game 1. Yanks lose, 8-5.

The Yanks got off to a 3-0 lead on Boston but lost 8-5 in their first spring training game this season.

The good:

Aaron Hicks had an RBI double.

Gleyber Torres homered.

Greg Bird was 2 for 2 with an opposite field double and a single to right.

Clint Frazier smoked a single up the middle and hit a long fly to right caught on the warning track.

Ryan McBroom hit a HR.

Tyler Wade had a double, as did Trey Amburgey.

The not so good:

A lot of pitchers the Yanks used in the game are pitchers that, quite frankly, we don’t want to see on the mound for the Yankees at any time this year.

They were pitchers destined for AAA or pitchers that are not so hot trying to stay in the majors by latching on to the Yanks or are pitching for the Yanks hoping to latch on to another club by pitching well now and having another club pick them up.

Cortes (L) 2 2/3 IP, 4 R, 6 H, 0 W, 3 K.
Hutchinson 1 IP, 2 R, 3 H, 1 W, 0 K. Gave up 3-run HR.
Coulombe 1 1 /3 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 0 W, 1 K.
Coshow 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 1 K.
Brothers 1 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 W, 0 K
Harvey 2/3 IP, 2 R, 3 H, 0 W, 1 K.
Diehl 1/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 0 W, 1 K.

Cortes has 4 games of MLB experience, 0-0, 7.71. 24, LHP,  AAA bound where in 35 games (25 starts) he is 9-10, 2.93.

Hutchinson is a guy the Yanks are looking at but a guy you wonder why they are even looking at him. A DFA candidate. The first four batters he faced today were a double, HR, single and walk. In 2018, 5 starts and 11 relief appearances for the Phillies and Texas. 2-2, 6.75. 32-23, 5.10 in his career. Hoping to just latch on to a team …. anywhere. As I mentioned, a DFA candidate hoping to (if he doesn’t make the Yanks) show himself off to someone else. He didn’t do that today.

Coulombe was 1-1, 4.56 for the Rockies in 2018, 6-4, 4.27 in his MLB career. Another marginal major leaguer like Hutchinson hoping to get a crack at the majors, maybe go to AAA with the Yanks or prove himself to another team. Another DFA candidate.

I don’t mean to be rough on Hutchinson or Coulombe, but remember last year when infielder Danny Espinosa, the former Nationals infielder, was in camp and was let go after just a couple of weeks? That is what I am thinking of Hutchinson and Coulombe. In for a look-see, but won’t be there long.

Coshow was lousy at AAA SWB last year, 1-4, 4.95.

Brothers pitched in just one MLB game last year. He was with Colorado 2011-2015 and with the Braves in 2017. 20-14, 3.79 in his MLB career.    

Harvey and Diehl are both AA or AAA bound.

The Yanks and Bosox didn’t use too many players today that would be considered for the MLB roster.

For the Yanks, it was Torres, Hicks, Andujar, Bird (maybe, he has to beat out Voit) and perhaps Frazier as far as guys you consider major leaguers.

None of the pitchers.

The Yanks face Tampa Bay at home tomorrow. 1 PM, MLB.

 

 

 

Yanks sign Severino to 4 year, $40MM extension.

The Yankees avoided arbitration with Luis Severino by signing him to a 4 yr. $40MM extension.

It will be interesting to see who has a bounce-back year this year. The Yanks won 100 games last year despite Gardner hitting .236, Sanchez .186 and Bird .199. Imagine if they would have been their normal selves.

Speaking of Gardner, will he lead off this year or bat 9th? There is a case for Aaron Hicks leading off. The only problem is, on a team so righty-leaning, Hicks’ switch-hitting bat may be needed in the middle of the lineup.

But according to a recent article (I believe NY Post?) here are some interesting numbers from Hicks last year. .248-27-79, 11 SB, drew 90 walks.

In the three places where he had 100 or more plate appearances in 2018,

Batting first .276-11-21
3rd .222-6-19
6th .223-5-20.

Hmmm… interesting. And Hicks is more likely to lead off a game with a HR than Gardy.

We’ll see.