Early ST Thoughts And Afterthoughts

(Game on!  Courtesy of The AP)

Camp has been in full swing for over a week now, which means there has been just enough activity to start talking about what's been happening.  In no particular order, here are my takes on the early Spring Training storylines in Yankee camp after the jump.

- With the offseason work he put in and Joe all but cementing his spot as the #3 hitter in the lineup before camp even got going, Robinson Cano seems poised to unofficially take this team over in 2012.  Hopefully the front office remembers that when it's time to talk new contract with him.

- As for Cano being named the #3 hitter already, I'm all for it.  It can be taken as a knock on Teix, but Cano has been a better and more consistent hitter than Teix going back further than just last season.  Cano is the best hitter on the team and has earned that spot.

- The Austin Romine back injury, which I touched on briefly last week, wouldn't be as big a concern if it wasn't the same injury that shut him down last season.  Romine is one of the key pieces in determining what the Yankees are going to do in order to get down to $189 million in two years; they need him healthy.

- Russell Branyan suffering back issues could be an early end to his hopes of making the team.  He was already fighting a major uphill battle after the Ibanez signing.  If he can't get on the field and get his hacks in at the plate, he won't stand much of a chance of changing the Yankees' plans.

- Also on the topic of injuries, hopefully George Kontos is able to resume full pitching activities soon.  He's a sleeper for that last bullpen spot and it'd be a shame to see him miss a chance to make the Opening Day roster because of an injury.

- Flip a coin on which ST pitching debut will draw more attention, Pineda's today or Hughes' tomorrow.  I have to say I'm more interested in Hughes' simply because he's coming off such a down year.

- That being said, I think Pineda is going to be very good this year.  Dude is a beast and I'm bummed I won't get to see him pitch today.  Although if I was in the batter's box staring back at this:

(Screen grab courtesy of MLB.com)

... I would probably piss myself.

- The kind words won't matter much until he throws it consistently in games, but the early feedback from Martin on Pineda's changeup was very encouraging.  The earlier he starts to master that pitch, the higher his ceiling will rise.

- By my count, the "Best Shape of My Life" Club this year includes Russell Martin, Hughes, Swish, and Teix.  Membership to that club rarely means anything, but with two of those guys in contract years and the other two looking to bounce back from subpar 2011s, maybe it carries a bit more weight for them.

- In that same vein, it will be interesting to see how the Yankees handle Brett Gardner and Andruw Jones this spring.  If Jones has really gotten back into good shape this year, we could see more L/R platoon action with him and Gardner in left this season.

- Do the Yankees really NEED another guy to carry on the "pie in the face" walk-off win celebration?  Can't that tradition die with the former player who started it?

- Big ups to Dan Burawa for getting name dropped by both Girardi and Cash as a standout early on in camp.  If he wasn't on the radar coming into ST, he certainly is now.

- Ditto for Zoilo Almonte, who Girardi mentioned as one of the most impressive young guys in camp so far.  With the $189 million goal for 2014 becoming official this past week, Almonte should command even more attention from the Yankee brass as a possible OF option.

- I don't want to speculate too much, but I think Mo being well ahead of his usual ST schedule signifies this year being his last.  When you know it's the last time you will go through this stuff with your teammates there's more incentive to be involved in all the typical ST activities, and Mo seems to be taking that approach this spring rather than sticking to his usual one-man schedule.

- On the "2013 Rotation Watch" front, both ManBan and Betances were a bit shaky with their command on Saturday, Betances more so than Banuelos.

- As much as people warn against putting too much weight on ST performance, in Betances' case I think it could be critical.  If he can't show any improvement in his command or consistency with his delivery against fellow MiL hitters and college players, he could be at risk of getting labeled as a future reliever for the Yanks before he even has a chance to show his full starter stuff.

- Ivan Nova sounds like he's dedicated to improving his changeup this spring.  If he can make that a serviceable Major League pitch, he could really be dangerous this season.

- If C-Grand can go 3-3 with two XBH while still reportedly working out the kinks in his swing mechanics, imagine what he could do once he works the kinks out and the regular season starts?

- Watered down competition level or not, you've got like the Warren/Phelps/D.J. Mitchell troika coming out and having strong outings in their first go-round of the spring.  When was the last time the Yankees were this deep at starting pitcher?

- It was only one game, in early March, but the early returns on A-Rod's offseason surgery are very good.  His hip rotation through the zone on his HR swing yesterday looked very fluid, which is key for him to be able to unleash his full opposite-field power.  Between that and the way Kobe is playing in LA, more veteran players might want to start looking into this plasma therapy business.