Inbox: Will Judge wear a ‘C’ on his uniform?
There are lower than 30 days till Yankees pitchers and catchers report back to Spring Training in Tampa, Fla. It’s a brand new 12 months, and it’s time to dig in for a recent look into the Yankees Inbox and see what you, the followers, are asking about:
Will Aaron Judge be sporting a captain patch on both the house or away jerseys this 12 months?
— Pauly, through Twitter
The brief reply isn’t any. When Judge walked in to satisfy with the print media on the day of his news convention, I pointed on the Nike swoosh on his proper chest and mentioned, “No C?” He laughed and mentioned: “No, we don’t do that here.” And it’s true: Derek Jeter by no means wore a “C,” nor did Don Mattingly, Thurman Munson or any of the earlier Yankees captains.
Generally talking, that’s been extra of a designation for different sports activities, although it’s occurred just a few instances in baseball. I recall John Franco opting to put on one when he turned the Mets’ captain in 2001, and Jason Varitek carrying the letter with the Red Sox from 2005-11. There’s an fascinating Uni Watch article on the subject right here.
And in the midst of looking about this, I additionally stumbled throughout this quote that Jeter as soon as gave me: “I’m no different than anyone else on the team,” he mentioned in 2008. “I understand that I have that title. I’m not saying that there’s anything wrong with anybody that’s wearing it, but for me, it was never an issue.”
Do you suppose Josh Donaldson would be the Yankees’ common third baseman?
— Mike S., Ellettsville, Ind.
Yes. General supervisor Brian Cashman confirmed as a lot in December, saying that Donaldson will “definitely” be the starter on the scorching nook in 2023. The Yanks are banking on a bounceback offensive efficiency from the 37-year-old, who slashed .222/.308/.374 with 15 homers and 62 RBIs in 132 video games (94 OPS+). Both Cashman and supervisor Aaron Boone imagine that Donaldson ought to have been prominently concerned within the Gold Glove dialog at third base, so it seems that the “Bringer of Rain” could have extra possibilities to affect the Yanks’ lineup.
“I do think he’s got another offensive bang in him. I really believe that,” Boone mentioned. “We saw how good he was defensively. He just never kind of got on track offensively last year. It was like he’d put together a couple of days, and then hitting becomes hard when you’re constantly searching for that good roll. But I think he’s got another big offensive season in him, I really do. This offseason will be important for him.”
What is the present panorama for an Opening Day shortstop?
— Evan P., Wichita, Kan.
It will depend on who you communicate to, however my sense of the spring competitors is that Oswald Peraza will are available in because the frontrunner to win the job, with the group on the lookout for Peraza to proceed the promising improvement that he confirmed late final season on the large league stage. Top prospect Anthony Volpe may also be in camp and will obtain loads of enjoying time, however contemplating it’s Volpe’s first large league camp and he has solely had 99 plate appearances on the Triple-A stage, he’d want a sensational spring to persuade the Yanks to leap him previous starting the 12 months with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Isiah Kiner-Falefa agreed to a $6 million contract in November, which appears pricy for a utility infielder. Kiner-Falefa could possibly be seen as a fallback if Peraza isn’t prepared or sustains an harm, and definitely the Yanks may think about a commerce as they purpose to create respiratory room beneath the highest luxurious tax threshold.
It’s attainable, however not completely obligatory. The Yankees did think about transferring Torres to the Marlins for right-hander Pablo López ultimately 12 months’s Trade Deadline, so we all know that mentioning Torres to Cashman’s baseball operations crew wouldn’t immediate a direct hang-up. It’s not thought that the Yanks are actively procuring Torres, however they’d hearken to presents. The infield logjam hasn’t cleared a lot from this time final 12 months, after we questioned how or the place DJ LeMahieu would get his at-bats.
Torres and the Yankees landed $500,000 aside of their contract talks for 2023, with Torres submitting at $10.3 million and the membership at $9.7 million. Torres has worth, coming off a 12 months wherein he slashed .257/.310/.451 with 24 homers and 76 RBIs (114 OPS+), though his numbers aren’t fairly the place they had been as an All-Star in 2018 and ’19. He’s additionally not eligible at no cost company till 2025, which might be interesting on the commerce market.
Do you imagine the Yankees are nonetheless in on Bryan Reynolds? I imagine he makes this a whole crew and is constructed for Yankee Stadium.
— Nick M., through e-mail
Everything we’ve heard so far is that these talks have stalled; the Pirates’ asking worth is sky-high for Reynolds, a switch-hitter who turns 28 later this month and slashed .262/.345/.461 with 27 homers and 62 RBIs (126 OPS+) in 145 video games final 12 months. Even although Reynolds requested a commerce in December, Pittsburgh has proven no inclination to dump him for something lower than an enormous return.
The New York Post reported that the Pirates requested the Yankees for a number of gamers from a gaggle that included Volpe, Peraza and Jasson Domínguez. If that’s the case, it appears possible that Reynolds will start the ’23 season in Pittsburgh.
Do you suppose LeMahieu will likely be wholesome this 12 months, and if that’s the case, do you see him batting leadoff?
— Shawn C., through e-mail
The Yanks’ most up-to-date updates on LeMahieu are promising, because it seems the conservative course of therapy will allow him to keep away from surgical procedure and start the spring on time. LeMahieu was unavailable in the course of the postseason because of a damaged sesamoid bone in his proper large toe that led to ligament injury in his second toe. It’s an advanced harm, however LeMahieu has been understanding on the crew’s complicated in Tampa, Fla., the place he has been hitting, throwing, performing agility work and working.
