EVERYBODY IN THE POOL!
Yankees name 60-man roster filled with vets, prospects
No one knows what the 2020 season is going to look like — or if it will even be played — but the Yankees know who they’ll have in camp at the start of this bizarre season.
The team released its 58-man player pool on Sunday for the resumption of spring training, and while there were no huge surprises, it included some prospects that could be called upon for the first time in the middle of a pennant race.
Clarke Schmidt and Deivi Garcia are among the young arms the Yankees included who could contribute to a rotation that will be without Luis Severino (Tommy John surgery) and Domingo German (restricted list for violating MLB’s domestic violence protocol last year).
They also announced the signing of 29-yearold Matt Duffy to a minor league deal. Duffy was released by Texas earlier in the year. He was the Rays’ starting third baseman in 2018 and the centerpiece of the trade that sent Evan Longoria to the Giants, before an injuryplagued season last year.
Estevan Florial, the 21-year-old outfielder, was also included in the pool after finishing last season with Class-A Tampa. Jasson Dominguez,
the 17-year-old phenom signed nearly a year ago, was not.
For all the fresh faces on the roster, though, the Yankees will rely on established stars like newly signed Gerrit Cole and veteran players, including Masahiro Tanaka, Aroldis Chapman and Aaron Judge.
Can Gleyber Torres build on what he’s done early in his career — and can he be reliable at shortstop?
And they’ll need Judge, Gary Sanchez, Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Hicks to show they can stay healthy. Judge was sidelined during spring training with a fractured rib suffered in September, while Stanton had a strained calf and Hicks was rehabbing from offseason Tommy John surgery.
Sanchez has dealt with injuries for much of his career and the Yankees put six catchers on their roster, including newly signed Max McDowell, who had been in the Brewers’ system.
Clint Frazier and Miguel Andujar figure to play roles at some point, with Andujar listed on the roster as an infielder/outfielder — along with Tyler Wade.
Teams had until 4 p.m. Sunday to submit their rosters. They will be allowed to have 30 players on the roster for the first two weeks of the season, with the number eventually reduced to 26 games and there will also be a three-man taxi squad on all road trips in case of injury or illness.
The other players will work out at an alternate site, which could be Triple-A Scranton/ Wilkes-Barre for the Yankees, for the remaining players to train in case they are called up to the major league roster.
The Rays, who figure to be the Yankees’ top rivals in the AL East, included perhaps the game’s top prospect — 19-year-old Wander Franco — on their 60-man roster.
Tampa Bay general manager Erik Neander told reporters Sunday that Franco and other minor leaguers who might not be options to help at the major league level this season were put on the roster because the team had “spots to play with” and would benefit from the experience.
“We expect to contend,’’ Neander said. “We expect to compete.”
Also impacting the Yankees is that Blue Jays players reportedly were told to head to Toronto. There had been thought the Blue Jays would stay at their spring training site in Dunedin, Fla., with travel restrictions into Canada still in effect.