Mo plans to hit the road
It’s a running joke of Spring Training that Mariano Rivera doesn’t need to hang any gray pants in his locker. Why would he? The Yankees aren’t about to put him on a bus and have him trekking all over the Sunshine State; even trips across the Courtney Campbell Causeway to play the Phillies in Clearwater are a little bit too much of an inconvenience.
But Rivera indeed has been issued a pair this spring, and what’s more, he plans to use them. I wouldn’t go looking for Rivera when the Yankees visit Fort Myers or Kissimmee, but he confirmed today that he does plan to be with the team for the April 1 and 2 exhibitions against the Marlins at Miami’s Sun Life Stadium.
Of course, that’s a little different situation than rolling over to Dunedin or something; Rivera still won’t have to ride the bus, since the Yankees are booking a charter flight from Tampa to Miami on March 31.
Will Girardi want a second lefty reliever?
Clay Rapada held lefties to a .104 batting average last year with Baltimore (5-for-48), but righties smoked him at a .692 clip (9-for-13).
With Eric Chavez now taking the backup corner infield spot, the truth is that unless someone gets hurt this spring — fearless prediction: someone will, eventually — most of Joe Girardi’s decisions seem to be pretty much locked in.
One area where that’s not the case is in the bullpen, as the Yankees will again ponder whether they need a second lefty behind Boone Logan. They were going to have Hideki Okajima competing for that job, but Okajima flunked his physical due to a shoulder issue and had his contract voided.
So the competition will have Clay Rapada, Cesar Cabral, Mike O’Connor and Juan Cedeno all trying to get noticed. Will any of them break camp with the team, or will the Yankees take another Luis Ayala-type (Manny Delcarmen, perhaps) as their final bullpen arm?
OK, I’ll admit that it’s not the sexiest debate the Yankees have ever had in Spring Training, and on top of that, it’s impossible to say for sure right now. But Girardi will think about it. Cabral and Rapada might be the most interesting options on paper, though Rapada really should only be used to face lefties.
“I think you could use it,” Girardi said. “You look at our guys in the late innings, you’re going to go to them and probably not worry about the second left-hander. I don’t think it’s a necessity, but if you find a lefty that can give you a little distance or you’re not afraid to use against right-handers, I think it’d be valuable.”
They did get through most of 2011 with Logan as the lone lefty, but Girardi said he could have used another choice.
“At times I think it would have been helpful, especially when [Rafael] Soriano was out or when Joba [Chamberlain] was out,” Girardi said. “I don’t think it’s a necessity because our right-handers get left-handers out.”
Lou Piniella officially joins YES
The YES Network officially announced today that Lou Piniella has joined the broadcast team as a special contributor.
According to a press release, Piniella will provide Yankees game and studio analysis on YES, will be involved in the network’s Spring Training and potential post-season coverage, and will contribute to YES special event programming.
“I’m honored and excited to join the Yankee network and be part of the Yankees family again,” Piniella said. “I left there in 1989 and it’s a thrill to be involved with the New York Yankees again and go back to my roots. I played on some great teams there and managed some great teams as well.”
Piniella was reported by the New York Daily News to be in negotiations with YES back in December. ‘Sweet Lou’ will also be in Yankees camp this spring as a guest instructor.
Yankees sign David Aardsma
The Yankees have signed reliever David Aardsma to a Major League contract.
Aardsma is coming back from Tommy John surgery performed last July 22. Aardsma is making approximately $500,000 this year with a club option for 2013.
“The move could help us in 2012, but it has a lot more eyes toward 2013,” Yankees GM Brian Cashman said.
Cashman said that Aardsma is believed to be about a month behind Joba Chamberlain. The Yankees have been talking to Aardsma all winter, Cashman added.
Pedro Feliciano will be transferred to the 60-day disabled list in a corresponding move.
Pineda excited to be with Yankees
Michael Pineda was at his house in the Dominican Republic when his phone rang. It was Brian Cashman on the other end of the line, telling the right-hander that he was now a member of the New York Yankees.
Pineda grinned as he recalled the moment, saying how excited his mother and father were. Not to take anything away from his time with the Mariners, but Pineda was thrilled too. The Yankees name carries weight, and Pineda said he couldn’t wait to report for Spring Training in Tampa. He hasn’t been disappointed.
“Right now, I like everything,” Pineda said. “I’m excited to be here with this team. It’s pretty good here, so I like it.”
Pineda throws a bullpen this morning, working with Francisco Cervelli. Here is the full list of pitchers-catchers workouts on tap:
Early BP: Manny Banuelos (Jose Gil), Cesar Cabral (Gary Sanchez), D.J. Mitchell (Kyle Higashioka), Dellin Betances (J.R. Murphy).
Group 1: Phil Hughes (Gustavo Molina), Ivan Nova (Gil), Pineda (Cervelli), CC Sabathia (Russell Martin), Rafael Soriano (Austin Romine).
Group 2: Freddy Garcia (Sanchez), Hiroki Kuroda (Martin), Boone Logan (Romine), David Robertson (Murphy), Cory Wade (Kyle Higashioka).
Good morning from Steinbrenner Field
A quick landscape shot of Steinbrenner Field to get the day started… a very pleasant 66 degrees and cloudy this morning here in Tampa.
Chavez re-signs with Yankees
Eric Chavez has reached agreement on a one-year big league contract with the Yankees, MLB.com has confirmed. The signing has not been officially announced because Chavez must first pass a physical.
Chavez’s signing was first reported by CBS Sports’ Jon Heyman. Chavez, 34, batted .263 with two homers and 26 RBIs in 58 games for the Yankees last season. He figures to see action mostly as a backup for Alex Rodriguez and Mark Teixeira at third and first bases, respectively.
With this signing, the Yankees are likely done adding players before position players report to camp on Friday. New York’s 40-man roster is full, so there will be another paperwork move in the works to clear a spot. Since they could just put Joba Chamberlain or Pedro Feliciano on the 60-day disabled list, it’s not really anything to worry about.
Now playing center field, No. 42… ?
One of the treats of getting to Yankee Stadium early in the afternoon on a game day is to watch Mariano Rivera patrol center field during batting practice, gracefully making sure everything hit in his general direction doesn’t hit the turf.
Had things gone differently in his life, there’s really no reason to doubt that Rivera could have played a different position instead of becoming the game’s all-time saves leader. The Yankees wouldn’t change a thing, but Rivera still dreams of playing center field in a Major League game.
“You know what, I want to. I want to talk to that man over there,” Rivera said, nodding toward Joe Girardi’s office at Steinbrenner Field. “I want to. I’d love to. But, again, you know, it’s not something I look at as a joke. I want to do it right.”
This isn’t the first time that Girardi has been reminded of Rivera’s desire, and he did accommodate Jorge Posada’s wishes to play second base last August. But granting Rivera’s wish creates a great risk for Girardi, who’d be holding his breath every second his closer spends out there.
There’s no perfect time to do it, unless it’s clear the Yankees are going to miss the playoffs (think 2008) and Rivera has already announced his retirement. Even if they’ve already clinched a playoff spot in September, they’d still need Rivera for the World Series run, and losing him would be catastrophic to their postseason chances.
Still, Girardi hinted that if 2012 is going to be Rivera’s final season, he might be inclined to roll the dice.
“He’d have to share his plans with me to be in that mix,” Girardi said. “I wonder if he’s going to come stand next to me for two innings like Jorgie did, in my ear. That bullpen phone will be ringing a lot in the bullpen: ‘It’s Mo again.’”
Rivera would never take matters into his own hands, but Girardi admitted that if Rivera raced to center field and told Curtis Granderson to hit the showers, there wouldn’t be a whole lot the Yankees could do about it.
“What if he was to run out there and say, ‘You’re out?’” Girardi said. “What are you going to say to him?”
Rivera said he would be fine with playing as little as one pitch in center field; really, he just wants to check that box on a list that has seen him accomplish almost everything else he dreamed of in the game.
“Hopefully. Hopefully,” Rivera said. “If not, I’m OK.”
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K-Long: Ibanez “a perfect fit” for Yankees lineup
Yankees hitting coach Kevin Long knows Raul Ibanez well from their days together in the Royals organization, and after the team officially announced Ibanez’s signing on Tuesday, Long said that he is excited about the acquisition.
“He’s a perfect fit for us,” Long said. “His professionalism, the way he goes about it, he’s an RBI machine. He can hit. It’s a nice addition. What he brings to the table, he’s just a terrific human being who brings a professionalism about him that you don’t find out there every day. I’m glad we got him; glad we picked him up. He’s going to be a big help.”
The Yankees see Ibanez as their regular designated hitter against right-handed pitching, with Andruw Jones hitting mostly against lefties. Long said that he believes Ibanez has enough left in the tank to help the Yankees.
“He’s 39, he’s getting older, but there’s plenty of bat speed there,” Long said. “That’s what you look for, first and foremost. I haven’t seen him up close and personal, and we’ll see what he’s got when he gets here, but I fully expect him to be a big part of our offense.”
Whoops: Girardi mentions Chavez on his roster
This was a funny moment today in camp. Not that it should be a big surprise to anyone, but Joe Girardi had to backpedal a little bit this afternoon after accidentally mentioning Eric Chavez as one of his backup first base options.
“We don’t have him, but there has been talk about him,” Girardi said, smiling, as someone pointed out the goof. “That’s not official.”
Indeed, the Yankees have no agreement yet with Chavez, but it seems extremely likely they’ll hammer one out before position players hit camp on Friday.
“I’d like to have him back,” Girardi said. “I thought he was productive for us and he gives me flexibility.”
Raul Ibanez’s signing is now official, so the Yankees’ roster is at 40 players.
Bryan Hoch
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