New York Yankee Players arrive at Yankee Stadium
New York Yankees fans can wake up today feeling a bit happier as a baseball season becomes more of a reality. That reality is that Yankee players are actually at summer camp at New York’s famed Yankee Stadium. Yesterday in a conference call, Yankee manager Aaron Boone revealed that both new Yankee ace pitcher Gerrit Cole and Masahiro Tanaka were at the Stadium. Tanaka had returned from Japan and had already had his intake testing.
Yesterday more players were seen returning to the Stadium for their first physicals of the restart. Seen in the video below are James Paxton, Brett Gardner, Chad Green, Clint Frazier, Gleyber Torres, J.A. Happ, Gio Urshela, and Tommy Kahnle exiting a team bus. It was difficult to identify all the players unloading because all the players were wearing masks.
Field of Dreams game will go on, but not with the New York Yankees
The New York Yankees will not participate in the MLB Field of Dreams game scheduled to be held on August 13, 2020. The game was originally scheduled to be between the Chicago White Sox and the New York Yankees. MLB came up with the idea of replicating the film and building a baseball stadium in Dyersville, Iowa, and replaying the famous game.
Based on the Kevin Costner film, Ray Kinsella walking through his cornfield one evening, he hears a voice whispering, “If you build it, he will come”, and sees a vision of a baseball diamond in his field and the great Shoeless Joe Jackson. Ray figures that if he builds a baseball field, Shoeless Joe, whom his father idolized, can play baseball again. Annie is skeptical but agrees to him plowing part of the corn to build a baseball field, despite the financial loss.
The game will still go on as scheduled, but it will now be between the White Sox and the St. Louis Cardinals. The is a downer for Yankee fans as most were looking forward to the game in the cornfields. But, like the coronavirus has affected many things in baseball this year, it caused the New York Yankees to be no longer playing the White Sox as the geographic divisions have been realigned.
Innings limits for young Yankee pitchers not likely
During a standard 162 game baseball season, managers are always concerned about innings limits for young pitchers. For instance, when Jordan Mongomery hit the majors in 2017, he was limited to how many games he could play in the season to protect his young arm. Inning limits first became an issue with an expected baseball star named Joba Chamberlin. However, he never reached his potential with the Yankees.
With a short 60 game season manager, Aaron Boone will not have to worry about that as much. Young pitchers that may see action this season are Dievi Garcia, Clarke Schmidt, and Mike King. Once they have built up arm strength, it is doubtful the Boone will put limits on how many innings they pitch during the entire coronavirus shortened season.
New York Yankees have plenty of options for Miguel Andujar
During yesterday’s media call in with New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone, much of the subject discussed involved how the season would progress with all the coronavirus protocols in place. He had little to say about individual players. But he did offer up some information on how Miguel Andujar would find his place blending in with the team and getting at-bats that the Yankees surely will want from him.
Manager Boone indicated that he was comfortable with Andujar playing both corners of the outfield, he also said that he during the first spring training got to play at 3rd base. Boone said that the more positions he can play, the more he will get to play. With the breakout season he had in 2018, the Yankees will want his bat in the lineup as much as possible even as a designated hitter.
With the questionable Aaron Judge being ready at the beginning of the season we may see Andujar, Clint Frazier, and Mike Tauchman platooning in right field until Judge is prepared to take to the field. Boone also said that Andujar may see some action at 3rd base the job he lost to Gold Glove like Gio Urshela.