New York Yankees players say intrasquads are nice, but they are ready to play other teams

The New York Yankees have certainly taken advantage of intrasquad games for nearly two weeks. The COVID-19 pandemic and the tight schedule have reduced the number of exhibition games significantly, so each team has had to prepare for the season while mostly facing teammates. That’s good for a while, especially for a team as talented as the Yankees. But at some point, more competition is needed.

Make no mistake, for the New York Yankees hitters, facing that pitching staff is no piece of cake. Gerrit Cole, Masahiro Tanaka, Jordan Montgomery, J.A. Happ, James Paxton, and arguably the majors’ best bullpen. And the same goes for the hurlers: it’s hard to try to retire guys like Gleyber Torres, Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton, and many more.

The Yankees will play other clubs soon enough

That’s why some Yankees, like Luke Voit, are eager for exhibition games to begin, as few as they may be. He needs to adjust to other looks, other stuffs. And that’s natural. He will get his wish starting this weekend, as the Yankees will face the Mets a couple of times and then the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday, before Opening Day against Max Scherzer and his Nationals.

“It’ll be nice to play another team,” Voit said. “I think that would get the jitters going more than having to face the same guys over and over. I think it’ll finally make it feel like it’s an actual game … guys will be more dialed in.”

“I’ve never faced Michael King, never faced Clarke Schmidt, and then you face them the next time so you kind of have an idea of how they’re going to pitch you. But again, I’d rather face other guys instead of our same guys all the time,” the slugging first baseman explained.

The Yankees, however, have done a fantastic job at simulating game situations in the middle of this situation. “The staff and team has done a great job of getting us a lot of at-bats. We also have the added benefit of the quality arms we’re facing. There’s nothing really that can simulate the game speed of having a guy standing on the mound throwing to us. Guys are starting to put together some really good at-bats and their contact point is moving out front a little bit more. We’re hitting some balls hard,” Mike Tauchman said.

Meanwhile, Mike Ford stated that “they all get a [scouting report] sheet every day, and it’s interesting to see after the game what their plan was to attack you. I like to see what the other side’s going to do to me. Just from facing our team, I’m very glad that I don’t play for another team.”