Urshela says he feels 100% with bone chip removed
CLEARWATER — The very first ball in play on defense for the Yankees Thursday, found Gio Urshela, of course. The third baseman, who was making his spring training debut three months to the day after having elbow surgery, was shifted to shortstop. He fielded it smoothly and made the strong throw to first for the out.
It was such a simple play it would not normally register among Urshela’s reel of highlight plays in the field, but after having a bone chip surgically removed from his elbow in December, it was reassuring. Urshela played three innings in the field, making just that one play, and went 0-for-2 with a strikeout.
“I feel 100%,” Urshela said after the Yankees 15-0 loss to the Phillies at BayCare Ballpark. “Obviously, I was trying to get my elbow ready. I feel like I am 100% now and I’m just trying to get that timing back.”
The 29-year-old missed 11 games in August and September dealing with the discomfort from the bone chip in his elbow. The surgery was only determined necessary after Urshela began some light offseason workouts.
Urshela slashed .298/.368/.490 with 11 doubles and six home runs in 151 atbats last season. It was his first “full” season as the Yankees’ everyday starting third baseman after he took the position from an injured Miguel Andujar in 2019.
While the only prognosis was Urshela saying he would be ready for Opening Day, Carlos Mendoza, the bench coach who also works with the infielder, knew as soon as Urshela reported to Tampa for rehab he’d be fine.
“Two to three weeks before he reported for the first official workout of the pitchers and catchers when I saw him in the player development complex and not only playing catch with him, but when we went out there and he started throwing to the bases, I knew right away that he was fine,” said Mendoza, who is filling in for Aaron Boone while he takes medical leave. “He wasn’t favoring anything. The arm action was good, he was clean. The arm speed was there and then a week after that he was dropping down, going to second base from different (arm) slots. And I was like he’s gonna be fine. He was bouncing back the next day... I wasn’t worried at all after I saw him the first week playing catch and after watching him throw across the diamond.”
Urshela said he expects to have Friday off and then play in a road game against the Pirates in Bradenton on Saturday.
FROM GMS WITH LOVE
Boone made sure that his players found out about his surgery to implant a pacemaker directly from him — albeit through a video he sent to a Zoom meeting. The Yankees manager wanted to ease his players minds and make sure they knew first-hand what was happening.
They appreciated being able to see him and that he took the time to try and ease their concerns. So, they decided to return the favor and let him know that he can rest easy in recovery.
“Once we had a team meeting about it and had a couple of coaches to explain what was going on. Most of us obviously knew he had that heart condition from what, eight, nine or 10 years ago, but we didn’t realize how serious things were going,” Luke Voit said Thursday afternoon. “We wanted to send a video to him. We had (Brett Gardner) send it and we also all said something at the end.
“So I wanted to keep him positive,” Voit continued. “We want him to know that he’s got plenty of time. It’s spring training. And just to get right before he comes back and helps lead us to a championship.”
ODDS AND ENDS
Asher Wojciechowski allowed five runs, four earned, on three hits and a walk in 1.1 innings of work, after which Albert Abreu gave up another four runs, all earned, on three hits and a walk. Nestor Cortes Jr. allowed three runs, all earned, on two home runs in Thursday’s blowout loss . ... Tyler Wade had the only hit among Yankees’ starters.
After he forced a trade from the Houston to Brooklyn, much to the chagrin of the Rockets’ organization and fans, and after he emerged as a Most Valuable Player of the Year candidate for a Nets team that has thrived since his arrival, James Harden says nothing has changed, that he’s the same player and leader in Brooklyn that he was in Houston.
“The same. It’s just, I get credit now. Previously I wasn’t getting credit,” Harden said after recording his eighth triple double in 23 games since joining the Nets. “Same leadership. I’ve been the same person. Haven’t been changed, not one bit.”
His role, however, has changed, which could be a reason why the perception has changed around him.
In Houston, Harden was the end-all, be-all for a Rocket offense that revolved around his unique and supreme offensive skill set. In Brooklyn, the roster is so stacked with three superstars and a bevy of capable role players that no one talent has to shoulder the load.
The result has turned Harden more into a facilitator than an aggressive, isolation scorer. In his first game back in Houston post-trade, Harden scored 29 points, dished 14 assists, nabbed 10 rebounds and recorded three steals. He was every bit the star the Nets gambled on when they parted with Caris LeVert, Jarrett Allen, Taurean Prince, Rodions Kurucs and seven years worth of draft assets, and every bit the franchise cornerstone the Rockets did their best to retain to no avail.
Harden didn’t agree with the notion that it’s more “freeing” to not be the No. 1 option on a team like he was in Houston.
“This league is tough, no matter what. How you separate yourself from being one of the elite players in this league is playing at a high level consistently every single night,” he said. “It’s great and it’s easy for somebody to have a great game every once in a while. But you separate yourself as far as being one of the ones, top five, top 10 in this league, when you do it every single night at the highest level. That’s what I pride myself on no matter if I was in the situation that I was in in Houston or my situation now. My thought process is, try to play well every single night and try to make an impact on the game every single night.”
Harden said it wasn’t an emotional night, not after Rockets owner Tilman Fertitta announced intentions to retire Harden’s number in the rafters. Not after fans peppered him with both cheers and boos, with one fan yelling that Harden quit on Houston. Not after the Rockets’ tribute video thanking him for the eight years he spent knocking on the door of a championship Houston never realized. And not after competing against teammates he used to call his brothers, like PJ Tucker, who shares a stylist with Harden.
“We’re just men on opposing sides,” he said. “Once I got on the court, I’m locked in. That’s just how I am as a basketball player.”
But he looked motivated, like he had a little juice heading into Houston, like he was a man on a mission to beat the team he once called his own.
“You could tell it meant something to him. You know, this place is special to him,” said Nets head coach Steve Nash. “Houston means a lot to him – the city, the organization and what he accomplished here with this team. I know it was a big game for him. I was proud of him for the way he handled it.”
Harden said he found out about the team’s intention to retire his jersey “on the Internet,” like everybody else. The honor is well-deserved: He averaged about 30 points, eight assists and six rebounds over eight seasons for a franchise that fell just short of winning a championship.
“My reaction (to the news of having his jersey retired in Houston) was, hopefully I did something right. Obviously I came up short of a championship, but the work on and off the court that I put in over the past eight years was elite you know, and obviously I think that’s the only thing I didn’t do, or didn’t accomplish is a championship, which is difficult to attain,” he said. “But as far as bringing excitement to this city, taking care of the fans on and off the court is something that I try to contribute, so hopefully that outweighs that.”
Matt Martin scored twice and the Islanders beat the Buffalo Sabres, 5-2, on Thursday night in the opener of a three-game series.
Noah Dobson, Anthony Beauvillier and Jordan Eberle also scored for the Islanders, and rookie Ilya Sorokin stopped 16 shots. The Islanders improved to 5-0-1 in their last six overall and 8-0-2 at Nassau Coliseum to remain the only team without a regulation loss at home.
“That’s when we’re at our best, when we have four lines rolling,” Martin said. “We’re a tough team to beat when we’re playing like that. This was a good one. We just got to keep it going.”
Taylor Hall and Rasmus Ristolainen scored for Buffalo, which has lost five straight (0-5-1). The Sabres are 2-81 since taking a two-week break for a COVID outbreak.
Jonas Johansson, making his second start of the season with starter Linus Ullmark injured, finished with a career-high 40 saves.
“It was a very bad game,” Ristolainen said. “I feel like every time we were kind of getting back at it, getting the momentum in their zone, and getting some good shifts then we made a mistake. I made unfortunately a lot of mistakes today that cost us the game.”
The teams continue the series with afternoon games at the Coliseum on Saturday and Sunday.
Sorokin, coming off 20save shutouts in his previous two games, stopped six shots in the first period, four in the second and six in the third to improve to 3-2-1.
With Buffalo trailing, 3-1, Jeff Skinner hit a goal post from the left circle in the opening minute of the third.
Eberle then put the Islanders ahead 4-1 as he scored on a rebound of a shot by Anders Lee at 3:14, beating Johansson on the glove side.
Ristolainen pulled the Sabres back within two at 7:23, jamming in the rebound of a shot by Jack Eichel for his third.