STRANGE NIGHT IN THE CITI

JOE Girardi admitted the venue and the setting would be “pretty strange” since the normal home team wasn’t in the home dugout the next three games. Citi Field served as the neutral site for the Yankees-Tampa Bay Rays series this week due to the effects of Hurricane Irma punishing the west coast of Florida and continuing to work its way north the last 48 hours. But Girardi said he had no problem with Major League Baseball’s decision to move the series to Flushing. The Yankees are the away team this series.

“I think that’s pretty strange, ‘cause the atmosphere is usually pretty electric here when we’re here. It’ll probably be a little different because we’re not playing the Mets and there wasn’t a lot of time to sell tickets,” said Girardi. “I imagine there aren’t a ton of Tampa Bay people up here. It would have been a safe place to come, though.”

Only the lower bowl of Citi Field was open for Monday’s game, making for an odd image to go along with the jumbotron showing the Yankee and Tampa Bay logos before the start of the game. Girardi said there were discussions within baseball to have the series played elsewhere, even a site on the West Coast, but that ultimately Citi Field seemed the best option. Girardi said the Bombers arrived in New York about 1 a.m. Monday after finishing their series in Texas. “From a logistics standpoint, I know they talked about other cities and there were hotel complications,” said Girardi. “I know they talked about the West Coast, I don’t think either team really wanted to go out to the West Coast. We’re still not in our home ballpark. We’re built for our home ballpark. We probably have played here a little bit more than the Rays have, but it seemed to be the best for both teams. Neither team had to come too far. They came from Boston. It’s not like we had an advantage where we got in earlier anywhere.”

Girardi said that for the most part, he had received good news from families of Yankee players, coaches and staff, and that Rays manager Kevin Cash told him, “the families of all the players were good. That’s the good thing.”

“Obviously we were very worried – coaches who have families there, players who have places there, staff who have places there. It seems like everyone came out all right,” said Girardi. “From a safety standpoint, people that I know down there came out pretty well.”

Jason Zillo, the Yankees media relations director, said there was “general cleanup” underway at the team’s Tampa spring training complex, but that all structures, including George M. Steinbrenner Field, are “unscathed.”

UP COMES FRAZIER

Clint Frazier, the rookie outfielder, was reinstated before Monday’s game after suffering an oblique strain last month and landing on the disabled list (Aug. 10). Girardi said Frazier will play in tonight’s game against