Here’s a cross-section of recent news, rumors, and notes from the Yankees, as well as their Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Railriders team.
Greg Bird: It looks like the train-wrecked Yankees first baseman will begin the first steps to rehabbing his injured ankle this week. It’s much too early to set a date for his return, although Bird himself insists he’ll be back by the middle of May, according to Coley Harvey of ESPN. We’ve been here before, and when everyone said he couldn’t, Bird proved that he could.
Didi Gregorius is tied for second in the American League in walks with eight. Last year, he didn’t achieve that mark until July. This could be due to pitchers wanting to stay clear of his torrid bat – or maybe Didi is merely learning to be more disciplined at the plate. In either case, he seems to be improving each year that he plays, and sooner or later the Yankees are going to have to deal with him for a contract extension or as a free agent. Gregorius was given the day off on Sunday.
Gleyber Torres hit his first home run of the season Saturday for the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Railriders. The Railriders split their first two games of their season. Chance Adams was ineffective in his first start of the season, yielding seven hits and five runs in only 3.2 innings. The Scranton Express is already racking up the miles as Domingo German, Jace Peterson, and Luis Cessa were grabbed off the Triple-A roster and called up to the Yankees when CC Sabathia and Brandon Drury were placed on the DL on Saturday.
Aaron Boone decided to sleep off Friday’s 14-inning loss somewhere in the bowels of Yankee Stadium rather than make the drive home in the wee hours of the morning.
Miguel Andujar will get his chance after all. Brandon Drury is on the 10-day DL after experiencing headaches and dizziness forcing him to leave the game on Friday. Barring a trade, there is no one on the Yankees depth chart who can play third base at a high level. Andujar got off to a rough start following his call-up but came through with a hit and RBI in Saturday’s win over the Orioles. This is what he wanted, and here it is.
CC Sabathia, according to reports in the New York Daily News, was not a happy camper when told he had been placed on the 10-day DL with a hip injury that caused him to be removed from the game on Friday. Sabathia, known for his warrior-like approach to the game, was brutally told by Brian Cashman (paraphrasing), “CC, you couldn’t even finish your last start, and you want to make your next one?”. Sabathia took it all in stride, though, and says he is okay with the decision made by the Yankees.
The Net: For all the hoopla about the net the Yankees insisted on placing to protect fans from foul balls and bats landing in the stands, there’s barely a peep from anyone. But maybe that’s because the rich folk who own those seats from first to third base have stayed away not wanting to sit there in the cold as real Yankees fans have done. Just saying.
Baseball, it is said, is only a game. True. And the Grand Canyon is only a hole in Arizona. Not all holes, or games, are created equal.
