THE BASICS
Home stadium: George M. Field, 1 Steinbrenner Tampa, FL 33614.
Directions: From the north or south — Take I-275 South to the Route 92 Exit (Dale Mabry North); the stadium is at Dale Mabry and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. From Tampa Airport — Take the Spruce Street exit out of the airport
Steinbrenner Drive, and head east. Spruce turns into Boy Scout Road. Follow to Dale Mabry and turn left; the complex is on the left.
Information: 813-879-2244; Yankees.com/spring
Prospect to watch: Clarke Schmidt, RHP. His mid-90s fastball has late sink, his curveball is hard, and his change-up bottoms out and could be an elite pitch.
Does Cole put them over the top?
For a whopping $324 million, the Yankees bought themselves the distinction of being favorites to win the AL pennant.
They haven’t been to the World Series since they won it in 2009, and free agent Gerrit Cole’s presence atop their rotation is designed to bring multiple championships back to the Bronx.
That’s a lot of pressure on Cole and the Yankees’ core players, led by Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Gary Sanchez at the heart of a potent lineup.
They can still boast having one of the best bullpens in the game, while watching two of their most formidable AL opponents – the Astros and the Red Sox – lose status and key players this winter.
But the Twins, Astros, and Rays still provide formidable opposition and the Yanks might regret allowing shortstop Didi Gregorius and All-Star setup man Dellin Betances walk in free agency.
Can Stanton stay on the field?
Already, lefty starter James Paxton could be out until late May/early June due to early February back surgery.
Valuable switch-hitting center fielder Aaron Hicks (Tommy John surgery) is due back by the second half.
With many key injuries, including Luis Severino and Dellin Betances, the Yankees still won the 2019 AL East. And they did so with Stanton playing just 18 regular season games. He exited the 2019 playoffs due to a quad strain.
The 2017 NL MVP with the Marlins, Stanton played 158 games for the 2018 Yankees and still heard boos from the New York faithful. Can he stay healthy enough to win their favor in 2020?
– Pete Caldera, North Jersey Record