It can’t be as bad as last spring training, can it?
This time last year the Yankees’ Florida stay was lowlighted by questions about Alex Rodriguez’s Biogenesis connections, the first of many setbacks to Derek Jeter’s fractured left ankle and Mark Teixeira’s wrist injury while preparing for the World Baseball Classic, which wrecked his season. After missing the playoffs last season, the Yankees tried to fortify this year’s roster with the additions of Brian McCann, Jacoby Ellsbury, Masahiro Tanaka and Carlos Beltran.
“We all saw what happened last year and it’s very rare that type of injury bug hits a team for consecutive years,” YES Network analyst Ken Singleton said by phone from Tampa.
“The Yankees went through what the Red Sox went through two years ago, which was exacerbated by the fact Bobby Valentine didn’t have the grasp on the team that they wanted. Now, we’ll see how the Yankees bounce back.”
There still are lingering health concerns over Teixeira and the soon-to-be-retired Jeter, but the biggest question on the Yankees comes with the Japanese import Tanaka.
The 25-year-old right-hander, who signed a seven-year, $155 million deal this offseason, will make his debut on Saturday against the Phillies. He already has wowed Yankees catchers and onlookers with his vast assortment of pitches, but this will be the first time facing major league batters after going 24-0 in Japan last year.
“I was immediately impressed,” Singleton said. “He’s a pretty big guy and the catchers all rave about his ability, but even with all the attention he handled the interview process very well.
“It’s kind of like the same thing we see [Hiroki] Kuroda go through and Ichiro [Suzuki], though he actually understands English pretty well. The Yankees have been through this before, and I think Tanaka will handle it really well. He has Kuroda with him, so that helps.
“So far he looks very [unfazed] about the whole situation. He just does it. From what I understand from the catchers it’s the same thing on the mound, he seems to have a presence about him and I was talking to Joe Girardi and he’s been impressed.”
Nevertheless, the Yankees face other issues.
There is the hope Brian Roberts and Kelly Johnson will help solidify the infield at second and third base, respectively. There is the battle for who will backup McCann at catcher among Francisco Cervelli, Austin Romine, John Ryan Murphy and Gary Sanchez. And then there’s the competition for the fifth starter’s spot among Michael Pineda, David Phelps, Adam Warren and Vidal Nuno.
“It’s going to be interesting for the Yankees,” Singleton said. “It’s not like it has been before and we’ve come to spring training and the team was about already set.”