It has been pretty quiet in Yankees
camp so far. Aroldis Chapman did miss
one day of practice already but the Yankees said it was a scheduled day off and
they were fine with it. He is also
missing today, the first full squad workout day which the Yankees said was also
known about a long time ago and it is an excused absence. The possible suspension is also looming with
him. I guess you can say he has been the
big story so far.
Alex Rodriguez will have a press
conference this afternoon for his first official day in camp. He is always a big story but it is a lot
different than at this time last year. The
Yankees announced today that Brett Gardner is suffering from a bone bruise in
his wrist, he hurt it during the wild card game in October and complained about
a week later. They said it is no big
deal, just being cautious because they can be and he will be fine for Opening
Day in six weeks. Brian Cashman the
general manager even said he could be ready for exhibition games which start
next week. Mason Williams will be on the
DL to start the season as he is still recovering from shoulder surgery. He feels much better though.
Rob Refsnyder who has become a bit
of a fan favorite has also become a big story which is kind of funny. We all assumed he might get traded or just be
stuck in AAA when the Yankees traded for Starlin Castro to be their everyday
second baseman. That may not be the
case, it still could be but it looks like the Yankees may be trying to fit him
in on the bench and make him more versatile.
He started as an OF and has improved at 2B, now they are going to try
him out as the backup 3B for Chase Headley, they also said they will try Castro
out in that position but if that is the case Refsnyder can also play 2B if
Castro is playing 3B. It will be
interesting to see exactly what they do with Refsnyder who can hit but his
defense has always been a question and who the fans have fallen in love
with.
Masahiro Tanaka already threw a
side session today and once again no bad reports so he is moving along. Hideki Matsui arrived in camp today as a
special guest instructor, always good to see him around. Jacoby Ellsbury was benched the last time we
saw him which was that wild card game loss to the Houston Astros in
October. He said there is nothing to
discuss and that he feels 100 percent.
He said that is all behind them, that he spoke with Joe Girardi that day
and it was left at that. Ellsbury said
that he felt he was getting better during the season but it wasn't until after
the season that he realized maybe he wasn't 100 percent, he said you don't have
time for that during the season and now he feels fine and ready to go.
Mark Teixeira said yesterday that
he wants to play another five years until he is 40. I would doubt it would be with the Yankees
but if he has another good year this year and stays healthy would the Yankees
bring him back for a year or two?? It is
interested to think about especially with Greg Bird the heir apparent being out
for the season. Girardi has talked about
resting these guys more during the season to keep them fresh and I think that
is a good idea and they have better backups now to make that happen.
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