Spring games are underway, and the Yankees will take the field with the majority of their full squad for the first time this year. It won’t be for long, of course, but those first couple of innings broadcasting on YES are bound to bring some serotonin with them. With that comes the caveat that backups will take their place shortly thereafter, with sprinklings of prospects getting a look here and there. On the road it’ll be even more sparse to see the starters, as the season opener showcased, which begs the question: just how much of spring actually catches your attention?
For most, spring is a ball of excitement for a couple of days and then the monotony sets in and pleas are made to fast forward time just a little bit to get to games that matter. It’s hard to invest totally into exhibitions even for the most plugged-in and invested fans when the stats won’t matter, the results are skewed by varying talent levels on a given day’s roster, and most players are working more on timings and pitch adaptations than trying their hardest to win.
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For some, this is part of the fun of it all — baseball is a marathon, not a sprint, and the contributions of guys slotted to start in Double-A at the start of the year can be surprisingly consequential depending on if things go really well for them or really, really bad for the big leaguers. Getting to see guys that won’t get the spotlight right away can be a breath of fresh air, and there’s always a name or two that catches people’s eyes with a highlight spring even though they’re nowhere near the majors yet. Building the hype early can lead to an enormous payoff in a year or two when the same kid comes back to camp ready to take on a role at the highest level.
There’s even a few who won’t care at all about spring — until the Yankees are playing in the Bronx, it just doesn’t matter to ‘em. What camp do you fall in, and what’s your reasoning for it? Personally, I’m always at least a little invested throughout spring, as it can lead to guys like Jordan Montgomery turning enough heads to take a rotation spot when they were far down on the depth chart to open camp. It’s harder to see splashes like that with a roster like this year’s team, but there’ll be a dark horse somewhere, I’m sure of it.
We’ve got just a couple of things to note before we get ready for the Yankees’ spring home opener. Nolan takes a look at Elmer Rodriguez’s promising start in the Grapefruit League season opener after the top pitching prospect tossed three scoreless innings, and then Nick wishes a happy birthday to a Yankee that came up for a brief stint with the 1990 Yankees and delivered a shot of adrenaline to a down-on-their luck team: Oscar Azócar.
Today’s Matchup:
New York Yankees vs. Detroit Tigers
Time: 1:05 p.m. EST
Video: YES Network, Gotham Sports, Tigers.TV
Venue: George M. Steinbrenner Field, Tampa, FL
