GOOD OL’ TEX
Teixeira arrives at Yankee camp believing he can play at least five more years
TAMPA — Jacoby Ellsbury says he considers it all over and done with since he talked to Joe Girardi the same day the Yankee manager benched him for the wild-card loss to the Astros last October.
We’ll see for sure as the Yankee season goes on, but Ellsbury said “We’re all on the same page,” Wednesday as Yankee position players reported for spring training.
“We want to win,” he added. “Both of us want to win. I talked to him that day and he knows I want to play each and every day, how bad I want to be out there. “We just left it at that.” Still, it’s hard not to wonder if the relationship between Girardi and Ellsbury is at least frayed. Oddly, they did not agree when asked by reporters if they had talked about the subject over the winter — Ellsbury said he did not talk to Girardi about it.
The whole flap started when the manager sat the $153 million free agent in the biggest game of the season. Brett Gardner started in center and Chris Young g in left againstg lefthander Dallas Keuchel uchel in the losergoes-home American n League wildcard game.
Asked if the benching ng has affected his relationship with h the manager, Ellsbury replied, “No. . I know those are valid questions to ask, but it really doesn’t have a bearing earing on this season.”
Maybe so, but Ellsbury ury did seem uncomfortable when moreore questions were asked on the topic. pic. He did not want to talk about t the disappointment of not starting the game, saying, “I’mI’m not going to get into all that.” At one point, Ellsllsbury suggested, “I guess ess there’s no reason, talkking about last year.”
He chuckled when n a sked i f he had broached the subject with Girardi over the offseason. “No,” he e said.
Girardi, however,, said at his first press s conference of spring training: “I have talked to him m over the winter, yeah.” That was right after Girardi was asked a question about potential fence-mend fence-mending with Ellsbury.
Girard Girardi says he doesn’t b believe he has to sm smooth out anything with his center fielder.fi
“But if I have to, I w will,” the mana manager said. “I had a tough decisio decision. Brett GardnGa rdner ha s been prett y suc successful he here, too. M Maybe he w wasn’t a as big a fr free-agent sig signing as Jacoby Ellsbury, but Brett Gardner has been extremely productive in his career when you look at it.”
Ellsbury later pinch-hit and went to center, finishing 0-for-1. Gardner went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts and Young was 0-for2 with a walk before Ellsbury popped up in his place in the eighth inning of the 3-0 Yankee loss.
The 32-year-old Ellsbury tried to put the focus on this upcoming season, saying he is healthy and confident entering camp.
Ellsbury had a hot start last season, batting .324 with a .412 on-base percentage in 37 games before suffering an MCL sprain in his right knee May 19. He returned July 8 and batted .224 with a .269 on-base in his final 74 games to finish the year with a .257 average and a .318 on-base.
“The goal this year is just to get off to a nice start and ride it through the whole season,” he said.