Spring Training News And Notes: 3/30/14

Spring Training is technically over, but there were a few noteworthy things happening yesterday as the majority of the team made its way to Houston for Tuesday night.

- Michael Pineda stayed behind to get 1 more start in at the Tampa complex.  He pitched in a MiL game and went 6 innings, giving up 1 run on 3 hits and 3 walks with 8 strikeouts.

- If you missed it before, here's what Tuesday's starting lineup will look like: 1) Ellsbury- CF, 2) Jeter- SS, 3) Beltran- RF, 4) McCann- C, 5) Teix- 1B, 6) Soriano- DH, 7) Gardner- LF, 8) Roberts- 2B, 9) Johnson- 3B

- A roster spot still needs to be opened in order to add Yangervis Solarte to the 40-man.  No word yet on the move, but I'd guess Nik Turley goes to the 60-day DL.

- Donnie Collins took an educated stab at predicting the Opening Day roster for the SWB RailRiders.  Definitely not the starting rotation they envisioned having.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/29/14

- No final game for the Yankees yesterday.  They got rained out and so while some of the team left to fly to Houston, another group will stay behind to get some last-minute pitching work in.

- In a bit of a surprise, Joe announced Yangervis Solarte as the winner of the final bench spot.  He had an excellent ST and had an opt-out clause in his contract whereas Eduardo Nunez still had a MiL option remaining.  Let's see how that hot spring carries over to the regular season.

- Ivan Nova, David Robertson, Shawn Kelley, and Matt Thornton all threw sim games in place of their scheduled game appearances.  Michael Pineda will throw one today.

- Masahiro Tanaka was selected as the winner of this year's James P. Dawson award for the best rookie in camp.  No surprise there.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/28/14

The Yanks checked another game off the ST schedule last night with a 3-0 win over the Marlins.  Hiroki Kuroda and Masahiro Tanaka combined for the 6-hit shutout.

- Kuroda was great in his 3 innings (3 H, 4 K), but the story was Tanaka.  He followed up with a 6-inning relief appearance in which he allowed only 3 hits of his own, didn't walk a batter, and struck out 10.  Shutdown city, population Ma-kun.

- The big news of the day was roster announcements.  Joe announced Dellin Betances and Vidal Nuno as the winners of the final 2 bullpen spots before the game and Dean Anna as part of the bench after.

- Only 1 spot remains open and it's down to Eduardo Nunez and Yangervis Solarte.  Deadline to set rosters is 3 PM tomorrow.

- Jacoby Ellsbury went 2-5 and played center field in another MiL game.  He said he feels fine and Joe said he'll play in Sunday's Major League game as a final tuneup.

- Top prospects Tyler Austin, Slade Heathcott, Jose Campos, and Greg Bird will all be held back in ExST before starting their respective MiL seasons.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/27/14

The Yankees were victorious in the 2014 Spring Training road finale yesterday, beating the Pirates 4-2 behind 4 shutout innings from CC Sabathia and 3-hit days from Ichiro, Eduardo, and Zoilo.

- Sabathia was just going through the motions and threw 44 pitches in his 4 3-hit innings, but it sounds like he looked sharp.  Next time we see him will be in the top of the bottom of the 1st on opening day.

- All 3 5th starter competition "losers" (David Phelps, Adam Warren, Vidal Nuno) worked out of the bullpen after CC.  They combined for 2.2 IP, 5 H, and 2 ER (Phelps) and are slated to pitch again on Saturday.

- No game yesterday for Jacoby Ellsbury, but he did go through a full workout.  He'll play in another MiL game today, maybe another on Saturday, and is still on track to be ready for Opening Day.

- Big day of morning roster cuts, with Preston Claiborne, David Herndon, Fred Lewis, Zoilo Almonte, Russ Canzler, and Scott Sizmore all getting reassigned to MiL camp.  Only a few real roster competitors left.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/26/14

In what was Derek Jeter's final ST road game ever, the Yankees lost to the Blue Jays 10-6 thanks to some truly horrid bullpen work by Preston Claiborne.  Gave up 6 runs, recorded 0 outs.  He probably cost himself a chance at a roster spot with that.

- Jacoby Ellsbury played in another MiL game and went 5 innings in center field to go along with a 1-4, 1 BB day at the dish.  He's scheduled for another one today and the team is saying he'll be ready for Opening Day.

- After John Ryan Murphy got reassigned on Tuesday, it was Austin Romine's turn yesterday.  By default, that makes Francisco Cervelli the (well-earned) Major League backup.

- Confirmed that Brendan Ryan will open the season on the DL.  Reported that Alfonso Soriano has been dealing with some shoulder tightness; nothing that serious.

- David Phelps and Adam Warren are scheduled to pitch out of the 'pen in today's game.  Ivan Nova and Michael Pineda threw bullpens yesterday.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/25/14

With the rest of the spring rotation set, the Yanks used 9 non-rotation guys to work 9 innings against the Phillies last night.  They combined to allow 6 runs in a 6-0 loss.

- The big news of the day was Joe officially announcing Michael Pineda as the 5th starter.  Hard to say Pineda didn't earn the job.  Noteworthy was Joe's statement that Pineda would not have an innings limit.  Doubt that's 100% true.

- Jacoby Ellsbury returned to the field as the DH in a MiL game and did so without any problems.  He went 1-6 with 2 BB and is scheduled to play another MiL game today.

- Tyler Austin also played in a game yesterday, his first of the spring.  Looks like he'll get a few in before the start of the season and he could be ready for the start of the Double-A season.

- John Ryan Murphy was reassigned to MiL camp, so expect the Cervelli backup announcement soon.

- When asked about Brendan Ryan's status, Joe said he'd be "really surprised" if Ryan was on the Opening Day roster.

- The day's bullpens: Carsten, Hirok, Ma-kun, and Cesar Cabral.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/24/14

No game and no scheduled workouts for the Yankees yesterday, but that didn't mean some guys weren't getting their work in.

- Ivan Nova started a MiL game and dominated the way you expect a pitcher of his caliber would against low level competition.  8 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 10 K, 91 pitches.  He's ready.

- And it looks like he's going to get the 3rd starter over Masahiro Tanaka.  Joe has tagged CC, Hirok, and Nova to start on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday to line them up for next week.  Tanaka goes 4th.

- Jacoby Ellsbury returns today, albeit in a DH role in a MiL game.  If he comes through without issue, he could play in a Grapefruit League game tomorrow.

- Tyler Austin, who's been hitting and taking defensive reps for a while now, could also get back into a few late spring games this week.  That could mean less missed regular season time than first anticipated.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/23/14

(Courtesy of the AP)

The latest ST winning steak is over.  Long live the latest ST winning streak.  The Yankees fell 3-1 to the Blue Jays yesterday afternoon.

- The game was Michael Pineda's worst start to date, and it wasn't even that bad.  6 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 2 K.  Threw 80 pitches, 57 for strikes, hit 1 batter, and touched low 90s on the fastball.  I'll take that from my 5th starter every damn day.

- The plan for Jacoby Ellsbury is to get him back into games in a MiL game on Tuesday.  He'll get a chance to test his sore calf without the possibility of throwing off back dating a potential DL stint.

- Ellsbury took morning BP and did fine.  CC Sabathia and David Robertson threw bullpens.

- With a scheduled off day today, Ivan Nova will make a MiL start to stay on schedule.

- Via Donnie Collins, Manny Banuelos threw 3 innings in a MiL scrimmage and touched 95 on the gun.  Kid's still got plenty of stuff.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/22/14

- The ST winning streak went up to 7 as the Yanks edged out the Twins 5-4 yesterday.  It was Masahiro Tanaka's first time traveling on the road this spring, and his first time facing a full Major League lineup, and he struggled a bit.  3 ER on 5 hits in 5.2 IP, with a walk, a hit batter, and 6 strikeouts.  His command wasn't as sharp as it's been, but he battled and got through the day.  I'll take it.

- Hiroki Kuroda made his scheduled start in a MiL game and he went 6 innings, gave up 2 runs, and threw 84 pitches.  He declared himself ready to go for the season after the outing.

- After fouling 2 balls off his left foot in the previous game, Derek Jeter felt no pain and had no problems taking BP.  He won't miss any time.  No updates on Jacoby Ellsbury or Brendan Ryan.

- Joe announced CC Sabathia as his Opening Day starter and hinted that the rest of the rotation order would be announced on Tuesday.  Gotta think Pineda is the favorite for the 5th spot.

- The rest of his competition - Phelps, Nuno, and Warren, all threw morning bullpens.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/21/14

- It's 6 wins in a row for the Yanks, as they blanked the Pirates 4-0 last night behind a stellar outing from CC Sabathia.  The big fella went 7 innings, gave up 4 hits and 1 walk, and struck out 7.  Fastball was still living upper 80s but Sabathia reportedly hit 90-91 a few times.  Looks like he's starting to find his form.

- Jacoby Ellsbury continued to do baseball activities without any pain in his calf yesterday morning.  Joe has not said if he'll play this weekend or not.

- The diagnosis is in on Brendan Ryan's upper back issue and it's a pinched nerve.  MRI revealed it and it looks very likely that Ryan will start the season on the DL.  More good news if you're an Eduardo Nunez fan, bad if you're a fan of good defense.

- To keep him on track for his regular season opener, Ivan Nova will pitch in a MiL game on Monday.

- Shane Green and Greg Bird were announced as the winners of the Kevin Lawn 2013 MiL Hitter and Pitcher of the Year awards.  Congrats to them.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/20/14

It was only 2 days ago the Yanks played mostly their A-team against the Boston B-squad.  The roles were reversed last night at The George but the results stayed the same as the Bombers won 3-2.

- David Phelps put up a solid showing as he tries to keep up with Michael Pineda in the 5th starter race.  He went 6 innings and gave up 2 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks while striking out 3.  Francisco Cervelli smacked his 4th HR of the spring.

- Little injury scare earlier in the morning when Jacoby Ellsbury was scratched from BP.  Turned out the team wanted him to take a precautionary MRI and it came back negative, so he's still on to return in a few days.

- Bigger injury scare before the game when Brendan Ryan was scratched with "upper back spasms".  Team said it's not related to his lower back problems.  Yeah sure.

- Joe indicated that a decision could be made on the 5th starter this weekend.  Have to think it's going to be Pineda.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/19/14

The Yanks weren't televised yesterday, so nobody got to see the masterful performance by Ivan Nova in their 7-0 thumping of the Braves.  Shame.

- But yeah, Nova.  He went 6.1 innings, gave up no runs, no walks, 2 hits, and struck out 5.  I'll have more on him later.  Carlos Beltran was the offensive star, going 3-4 with 2 RBI.

- Brendan Ryan went through a full workout yesterday with no limitations and should play in today's game.  Jacoby Ellsbury still hasn't started running on his sore calf, so his timetable remains up in the air.

- Joe confirmed that Vidal Nuno and Adam Warren are officially out of the 5th starter competition when he announced that Nuno would back up David Phelps out of the 'pen today and Warren would do the same for CC tomorrow.

- The experiment with Alfonso Soriano at first base is over.  He'll no longer take grounders there and Kelly Johnson is the backup for Teix right now.

- Warren and Hiroki Kuroda threw bullpens to Cervelli.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/18/14

I don't care when it happens, beating the Red Sox is always great.  The Yankees took them down 8-1 yesterday, which made the fact that I forgot I was supposed to live blog the game even more painful.

- The star of the day was Michael Pineda, who made his second ST start and looked damn good doing it.  Pineda threw 4.1 shutout innings, gave up 4 hits and no walks, and struck out 5.  He threw 60 pitches, 45 for strikes, and all 5 of his Ks came on swinging sliders.  He was sitting low 90s with his fastball and touched 94.

- Jacoby Ellsbury continued to progress, going through a full day of workouts.  Joe said he won't play today or tomorrow, and that he won't put Ellsbury back in the lineup until a day or 2 after Ellsbury tells him he's good.

- Brendan Ryan also did a full day's work with no problems and the plan is for him to play again on Thursday.

- David Phelps, CC Sabathia, and Masahiro Tanaka all threw bullpens in the morning.

- Big day of roster cuts.  12 MiLers got the axe, including Chase Whitley, Tyler Austin, Mason Williams, Mark Montgomery, and Corban Joseph.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/17/14

- No game yesterday thanks to the weather.  Hiroki Kuroda was scheduled to pitch, but instead he threw a 5-inning sim game at the complex to get his work in.  Michael Pineda is still slated to get the start today.

- Jacoby Ellsbury took indoor BP.  He told Joe his calf felt better, but Joe was leaning towards giving him today off too.

- Brendan Ryan was back to full workout duty.  More hitting for Tyler Austin.  Both are on track to return to games some time later this week.

- In a bit of off-field news, the Yanks lost their head of Major League scouting when Will Kuntz gave up the job yesterday to take a PR position with MLS.  Via Andrew Marchand, Steve Martone will replace him.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/16/14

After 2 losses on Saturday, the Yankees bounced back to win both their split squad games on Sunday.

- Masahiro Tanaka got the start in Tampa and he was very good again.  Went 4.1 innings, gave up a single run on 3 hits and his first 2 ST walks, and struck out 6.  Reports make it sound like he was throwing his offspeed stuff more than his fastball.

- In Panama, CC Sabathia was stellar in his 5 innings of work against the Marlins.  No runs, no hits, no walks, 5 Ks.  The big guy's velocity was still 88-89 tops, but his command was much better and he was hitting his spots.

- Ivan Nova, David Phelps, and Michael Pineda all threw bullpens.

- Tyler Austin took live BP and is on track to get into a game this week.  Brendan Ryan took swings and fielded grounders.  Still no exact timetable for his return to game action.

- Manny Banuelos was the latest roster cut, and he could start lower than Triple-A to spend more time shaking the rust off.  58 players left in camp.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/15/14

It was day 1 of the 2-day split squad series in Panama yesterday, and it didn't get off to the start the Yanks were hoping for as they lost both games.

- Back in the states, the Yanks fell 2-1 to the Orioles.  Vidal Nuno threw 4 scoreless innings with 3 Ks, allowing just 1 hit and 1 walk.  Brian Roberts went 2-3 against his former team.

- In the Panama nightcap, the Yankees were actually no-hit by the Marlins in a 5-0 loss.  Adam Warren was pretty good (4.1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K) but got no help.  The group of MLB regulars in the starting lineup went a combined 0-14 with 6 Ks and 1 BB.

- Larry Rothschild indicated that Masahiro Tanaka may start the 4th game of the regular season as a way to give him an extra day of rest.  Tanaka makes his latest ST start today.

- Eduardo Nunez is fine after getting spiked in Friday's game.  Russ Canzler has been getting treatment for some hip stiffness.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/14/14

Yanks fell 7-3 to the Twins yesterday in their final game before the weekend split series.

- David Phelps was so-so in his followup to his great last start.  He gave up 2 runs on 5 hits and 1 walk in 4 IP, and struck out 4.  It was the type of inefficient outing that's always been a problem for him.

- Manny Banuelos struggled again, getting charged with 4 ER in less than an inning's work.  His spring ERA is now 63.00.  Dellin Betances, on the other hand, was brilliant, working 1.2 scoreless innings and getting out of a bases loaded jam.

- Hiroki Kuroda and Shawn Kelley threw bullpens in the morning.

- Brendan Ryan and Tyler Austin continued to progress in their efforts to return from injuries.  Ryan hit and took grounders and Austin had his first live BP session of the spring.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/13/14

It was split squad city yesterday as the Yanks played 2 games, 1 against the Orioles and 1 against the Phillies.

- Ivan Nova got the start against the Phillies and was up and down in a 6-2 loss.  He threw 5 innings, gave up 3 ER on 9 hits, didn't walk anybody and struck out 6.

- Michael Pineda made his first start of the year against the O's and looked good again.  He went 2.2 scoreless innings before reaching his pitch count (48), gave up 3 hits, 1 walk, and K'd 5.  Fastball was 89-92 again and the slider looked good, but he's still shaking off the rust.

- Joe announced the full travel squad to Panana, including a change at catcher as Francisco Cervelli will travel and Brian McCann will stay behind to catch Tanaka.  Some are speculating that this could mean a trade involving Cervelli is in the works.

- He also announced next week's rotation: Kuroda Monday, Pineda Tuesday, Nova Wednesday, Phelps Thursday, Sabathia Friday.

- Jose Campos and Bryan Mitchell were both cut and assigned to MiL camp yesterday.  ST roster is down to 59.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/12/14

The Yanks were back in action yesterday afternoon and played to another tie, this time 7-7 to the Tigers.  Dodged another rainout and got everybody their ABs.  That's all that matters.

- Hiroki Kuroda was yesterday's starter and he was awful.  10 H and 6 ER allowed in 3.2 innings.  He was up in the zone with his stuff all day and got smacked around.  It happens.

- The offensive star was Francisco Cervelli, who hit 2 home runs in his 2 plate appearances.  He's now got 3 for the spring and leads the team in SLG.

- Jose Campos worked around a leadoff double to work a scoreless frame in his first ST appearance.  Fastball was 90-93.  Back at camp, Dellin Betances threw a sim game in the morning.

- Brendan Ryan's oblique is much better according to him, but Joe said he won't return to game action until next week.  Dean Anna apparently has a stiff neck after his collision with McCann on Tuesday.

- Tyler Austin has progressed to hitting soft toss in the cage.  Slade Heathcott, Nik Turley, and Gary Sanchez were all cut and assigned to MiL camp.

Spring Training News And Notes: 3/11/14

- CC Sabathia (real game) and Masahiro Tanaka (sim game) both pitched yesterday.  Tanaka's outing went pretty well, Sabathia's not so much.  I'll have more on them later today.

- David Robertson, Matt Thornton, Preston Claiborne, and Vidal Nuno were all also throwing sim innings yesterday morning between Tanaka's innings.

- Scary moment during the game when Dean Anna and Brian McCann collided on an infield pop-up.  It started when Anna tripped on McCann's mask, but thankfully both guys were fine.

- Brendan Ryan swung a broomstick yesterday and felt no pain, so he could be back in the lineup today.

- Joe announced some of the players who will be heading to Panama this weekend.  Derek Jeter, McCann, Brett Gardner, Alfonso Soriano, and Carlos Beltran are the main regulars making the trip.