The New York Yankees faced off against the Tampa Bay Rays on Saturday afternoon, losing 14–10. Despite the pitching having plenty of ups and downs, the offense looked sharp, with a number of players stepping up to the plate and producing consistently.
With several position battles underway, the Yankees received support from a number of guys eyeing a 26-man roster spot. Let’s take a look at the main takeaways.
- Yankees are seeing top outfield prospect get off to an excellent start
- Yankees face difficult infield situation with injuries taking hold
- Yankees’ struggling bullpen arm may have flipped the script
Good news for the Yankees:
The good news starts at the top of the order for the Bombers, as Anthony Volpe put together another solid offensive performance. While he did tally a strikeout on the day, he also roped a double to deep left field, scoring a run across four at-bats.
Oswaldo Cabrera matched with a hit, run, three RBIs, and a strikeout across three at-bats. The Yankees also received plenty of contributions from the outfield competitors, with Aaron Hicks, Willie Calhoun, and Rafael Ortega all hitting homers. Hicks recorded a solo shot in the bottom of the 2nd inning, Calhoun a solo shot at the bottom of the 3rd, and Ortega topped it off with a two-run blast at the bottom of the 4th. Considering all three are competing for the left-field job, the Yankees are certainly seeing the best of each individual.
In addition, the Yankees had a few solid prospect performances, with shortstop Trey Sweeney homering to center field in the bottom of the 9th inning, getting the Yankees to double digits on the scoreboard. In addition, Estevan Florial picked up a hit, and Jasson Dominguez posted two hits across three at-bats.
Bad news for the Yankees:
Offensively, there weren’t many poor performances, but the pitching struggled significantly. Luis Severino enjoyed his second outing of spring training, lasting 2.2 innings, giving up two hits, three earned runs, and two homers. He did strike out six batters in the process, noting that he’s feeling better after his first showing, giving up four earned runs.
Unfortunately, the bullpen wasn’t able to stifle Tampa Bay’s efforts, notably Nick Ramirez and Jhony Brito combining for six hits allowed and six earned runs. In total, the Yankees gave up 16 hits, 12 earned runs, four homers, and struck out 11 batters.
The Yanks will take all the Atlanta Braves on Sunday afternoon, looking to get back in the win column.