GLEY' IT ON THE LINE
Verlander wants to emulate ageless Ryan (you didn’t think we meant already hurting Jake)
TAMPA — Gleyber Torres was the only non-pitcher or catcher in the Yankees’ clubhouse at George M. Steinbrenner Field on Wednesday, there due to his participation in the upcoming World Baseball Classic.
But he won’t be quite as lonely once the rest of the position players join him, including a glut of infielders that could possibly make Torres expendable in a trade this spring if the Yankees find a return that could fill other holes on their roster.
For now, though, Torres is still a Yankee, and manager Aaron Boone said he sees him as his second baseman in a “regular everyday-ish role.”
“I feel like this is my home and for sure I don’t want to leave,” said Torres, who is still under team control for two more years. “This year and next year, I just want to put up really good numbers and try to stay all my career with the Yankees. At the end of the day, it’s a business and we don’t know anything about the future.”
If the Yankees are able to stay healthy this spring, they would have Anthony Rizzo at first base, Josh Donaldson at third base, one from among Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Oswald Peraza, Anthony Volpe and Oswaldo Cabrera at shortstop and DJ LeMahieu roving around the infield. Depending on how the shortstop competition plays out — Boone mentioned that all four players would also get reps at other positions this spring — the Yankees could have more than enough depth to deal Torres, who was part of trade talks last summer.
Because of the trade rumors that followed him throughout the offseason, Torres said he stopped checking social media around November. He and the Yankees avoided arbitration in January by agreeing to a $9.95 million contract, but that does not guarantee the 26year-old will remain a Yankee through the season.
“I think as a player, at any moment you know there’s going to be a younger guy coming for your spot,” Torres said. “I feel good because I know in the Yankees’ future there’s really good players to play for the team and do a really good job for us. … I feel like those guys can help the team to win the World Series. If I’m here, I’ll try to help them. If not, I don’t know. It’s something I don’t think too much about.”
Torres, who hit 24 home runs last year with a 114 OPS-plus, will leave camp to represent Venezuela in the WBC, but has his sights set on fighting for an everyday role when he is here.
“I think I got a couple games here and just show what I can do here and when I come back after WBC,” he said. “I know there’s many really good guys. Everybody competes for jobs. I’ll be here to compete, too.”
PORT ST. LUCIE — We are barely past Day 1 of spring training, and already we can begin compiling what promises to be a long list of differences between Jacob deGrom and his Mets placement, Justin Verlander.
Look away, Rangers fans. Count your blessings, Mets backers.
DeGrom recently reported tightness in his left side and will be sidelined a couple of days. Texas said it is merely being cautious with its new star because it’s early in spring training. That sounds like a very familiar story.
While this was all reported at the Rangers’ spring home in Surprise,
Ariz., it’s about the least surprising bit of news you will read all spring.
Meantime, Justin Verlander, who will turn 40 Monday, spoke at length at
Mets camp about his goal of pitching forever — well, at least closer to it than just about anyone else. Verlander’s career, sure to end at the Hall of Fame, has been defined by almost incomparable dedication to his craft and unending desire to compete. His attitude and aptitude are a near match.
“I feel blessed,” Verlander told a couple of writers just after his main media session ended Wednesday. “Throwing a ball is what my body likes to do.”
Throwing a ball is what deGrom may do better than anyone ever has. Yet, he does it fairly infrequently, fashioning a career as the highest-priced part-time pitcher going.
Verlander’s awe-inspiring press gathering on
Day 2 of camp, in which he put basically no limit on how long he might go, provided a neat contrast to deGrom’s spring-opening press gathering a year ago, when he declared — correctly, as it turned out — that he would be opting out of a $30 million a year Mets contract that seemed to torment him.
DeGrom can wow folks, of that there’s no doubt, at least while he’s out doing his thing. He’s a little like a comet. A flash and he’s gone.
“When he’s on the mound I’ve never seen anything like it,” Max Scherzer remarked Wednesday.
Beyond the pitching, deGrom is also apparently a marvel at negotiating, having extracted $185 million from his new employer. What a talent.
The $364 million Mets aren’t necessarily known for bargains, and Verlander is the highest-paid player in the game by annual salary (tied with Scherzer, his restored running mate from Detroit), but the total guarantee on his deal is almost $100 million less than deGrom’s ($98.33M to be exact).
It’s the greatest 100 million bucks Mets owner Steve Cohen ever saved.
DeGrom actually got a five-year deal, as he’s younger, and very likely also gets extra credit for having more innings left on his arm (by virue of having thrown far fewer — ain’t that the rony!) Verlander got two guaranteed years. But there’s no reason to doubt his indefinite ntentions.
While Verlander didn’t put an exact age on is career timetable, we can safely say it’s nowhere in sight.
“I think I’m constantly adapting. I’m always eking out new information, with the end oal of that information being to do what I can carry my career as long as possible and to ay at my peak as long as I possibly can,” Vernder said. “You’ve seen some guys in the hisry of our sport and other sports carry it into eir mid-40s. I don’t see why not.
“The only guarantee I can give is that at the d of my career, whenever the game tells me it’s time, there will be no stone unturned that would allow me to be as successful as I can for as long as I can.”
The odd comparison often raised regarding Verlander is Tom Brady — hey, it’s a fairly rare trick to carry athletic greatness into middle age. But that’s really not fair to either of them. Brady lasted to 45 (assuming his latest retirement sticks), but he endured two decades of hits from human locomotives.
The better comparison remains Nolan Ryan. Verlander actually referenced both Ryan and Jamie Moyer, who both lasted even longer than Brady, to 46 and 49, respectively.
Verlander’s Tigers front office bosses Dave Dombrowski and Al Avila both recalled Wednesday that Verlander admired Ryan, who threw impossibly hard into his mid-40s, and both have long seen a connection there. Neither expressed surprise at Verlander’s continuing exploits. And former Tigers manager Jim Leyland didn’t either.
“I definitely think he can do it,” Leyland said by phone about Verlander matching Ryan’s longevity. “He’s always kept himself in great shape and he always had those strong legs, like [Tom] Seaver and Ryan. He’s a dedicated guy and he’s always loved the game. He’s not pitching for the Hall of Fame anymore. He’s a first ballot shoo-in at this point. He loves the competition.”
The trend looks as positive as possible. Verlander posted a career-best 1.75 ERA last year — at age 39 — with the champion Astros. He has evolved and adjusted as few others have.
Verlander understands he’s already in small class when it comes to staying power.
“I always thought I was that person,” Verlander proclaimed. “And I’ve come to find ou I was right.”
He recognizes he’s very fortunate. Realistically, so are the Mets.