The New York Yankees took on the Toronto Blue Jays in their fourth spring training game on Tuesday afternoon. The Yankees starting pitching has been lackluster to start the 2022 campaign, and with the regular season quickly approaching, they must get back into form quickly.
The bad news:
The Bombers fell 9-2 to the Toronto Blue Jays, allowing 13 hits, nine runs, and two walks. Blue Jays newly signed starting pitcher Yusei Kikuchi recorded four strikeouts over 2.0 innings.
The Yankees had shown interest in Kikuchi before he signed with Toronto, and clearly, he is starting off strong, which might be an indication that general manager Brian Cashman missed out on yet another opportunity to bolster the rotation.
On the other side of the mound, Jordan Montgomery got the start for the Yankees, allowing six hits and three earned runs in just one inning pitched. The Bombers held Toronto to minimal production until Ron Marinaccio took over in the fourth inning, allowing three hits and five runs.
The good news:
The top performer for the Yankees on the day was Matthew Krook, a relief pitcher who picked up three innings of action, striking out five batters and allowing one hit. Krook featured in Triple-A last season in Scranton, recording a 3.17 ERA. If Krook continues to impress, he could get called up at some point this season to supplement injury or deficient play.
Offensively, the Yanks only produced six hits and two runs, courtesy of Gleyber Torres. Torres recorded two hits and an RBI over three at-bats, with the only other Yankees recording hits being Anthony Rizzo, Edwin Inciarte, David Freitas, and Eric Wagaman.
So far this spring, Torres is 4-for-6, boasting a .667 average with one RBI and a 1.333 OPS.
Having lost three of their first five spring training games, the Yankees will try to right the ship against the Baltimore Orioles on Wednesday afternoon.