All things considered, a 5-5 start to the season isn’t bad. The injury bug has struck, Giancarlo Stanton and Gary Sanchez aren’t hitting, the bullpen has been shaky, and yet the team is .500. No reason to worry this early on, and if anything, it’s nice to see the Yankees treading water when a lot of breaks haven’t gone the team’s way. I’m really looking forward to getting Aaron Hicks back in the lineup, which will allow Stanton to revert back to the designated hitter role. Stanton’s actually looked good in left field, better than spring training for sure, but I have a feeling that he’s going t ..read more

Last year I wrote a rave review of Out of the Park Baseball 18. Here’s how I introduced it: Year after year, Out of the Park Baseball (OOTP) is the top simulation baseball game available. OOTP 18 is no different. The amount of depth is incredible; from being able to play historical seasons, manage every detail of one’s controlled organization, and having complete power over customization, there isn’t much one can’t do in this game. On a yearly basis, OOTP is a reliably entertaining and immersive game that always feels like there’s nothing else necessary to add. Sure, some minor tweaks to AI al ..read more

Roster Move: Prior to tonight’s game, OF Aaron Hicks was placed on the 10-day disabled list with a right intercostal muscle strain and OF Billy McKinney was recalled from @swbrailriders. — Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) March 30, 2018 The Yankees have lost their starting center fielder, Aaron Hicks, just one game into the season. Not good, obviously. There’s no return timetable yet, but Hicks has struggled to stay healthy in the past and missed a decent chunk of time thanks to oblique issues last season. I suspect that Brett Gardner will handle center field duties until Hicks returns or until ..read more

Can every game be like yesterday’s opener? That was a lot of fun. You really couldn’t ask for Giancarlo Stanton to have a better debut. I have a few things on my mind related to yesterday’s game: I always defend John Sterling, but I just can’t get behind his Stanton home run call. It’s bad. I know his calls are contrived, but this one goes a bit too far. It’s not smooth and doesn’t roll off the tongue. Even Sterling couldn’t seem to articulate it. I hope he finds something else. There was some thought to sticking a lefty bat between Aaron Judge, Stanton, and Gary Sanchez in the lineup, but I t ..read more

Embed from Getty ImagesOpening day is just over 24 hours away – finally! 2018 is easily the most anticipated Yankees season in recent years, as all but two seasons from 2013 through 2017 ended up with the Yankees missing the playoffs. Plus, none of those teams had high expectations entering those respective years. This year is different for the Yankees thanks to young stars like Aaron Judge, Luis Severino, and Gary Sanchez along with the high profile addition of Giancarlo Stanton. Last year’s playoff run came as somewhat of a surprise, while this year a deep run is the expectation. The old Yan ..read more

Regular season baseball starts this week! It’s about time. A few things on my mind with Opening Day just around the corner: The Greg Bird news is a bummer. We’ll know more tomorrow, so cross your fingers. It’s hard not to be pessimistic knowing Bird’s injury history, that this current malady relates to the same issue as last season’s injury, and that he struggled this spring. Fortunately, the Yankees do have some depth to cover Bird for as long as he will be out. Neil Walker and Tyler Austin should be able to handle things at first base. Speaking of first base, we found out that Miguel Andujar ..read more

Update, 5:15pm: The Yankees have announced the signing. Jake Cave was designated for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster. Expect Cave to be traded in the coming days. — Source: Second baseman Neil Walker has agreed to a deal with the New York Yankees. Still pending a physical. — Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) March 12, 2018 This made too much sense not to happen. The Yankees have an opening at second base, at least until Gleyber Torres sheds any doubt that he’s ready for the show. Walker can play second base and is a solid hitter. What else needs to be said? ZiPS projects Walker to hit .2 ..read more

I worked from home today because of the Nor’easter that plowed through New York today. While working, I watched the Yankees face the Mets in sunny Port St. Lucie, which was quite the juxtaposition of weather. Opening day is merely 22 days away, but it sure doesn’t feel like it. Anyway, here are few things on my mind regarding the Yankees: Adam Lind had a 122 wRC+ last season, projects to be an above average hitter again this year, and yet somehow only landed a minor league deal with the Yankees. Of course, given the opt-out in his deal prior to spring training’s end, I’d be surprised if he spe ..read more

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