#aaron-hicks

#aaron-hicks

Alex Cobb gripped his hat with two hands in exasperation as he watched Scott Alexander knock down a come-backer, slip on the infield grass retrieving the ball, and, as he succumbed to gravity and the splits, throw a soft, one-hopper to first to secure the third out in the 8th as well Cobb's shutout performance.

I hate to start an article with a silver lining, but let's start this article with a silver lining.But first, we need something to line with silver, which means we need something bad.So let's skip the drama and excitement and suspense and start with the end (a very bad place to start, or so Julie Andrews would lead me to believe): the Baltimore Orioles beat the San Francisco Giants 3-2 on Friday night.

We have seen this movie before.Every time that Estevan Florial gets hot in Triple-A, a number of fans advocate for his call-up and for him to get an extended chance.When he gets to the majors, he almost always struggles, as his .579OPS in The Show indicates.However, it's hard to call a grand total of 63 plate appearances across four seasons an "extended chance."

The Harrison Bader Saga continues.The Yankee center fielder wins accolades of every kind when he's on the field, but has struggled to play a full season ever since debuting.He continues to struggle with that, being pulled from Monday's contest in Seattle with an apparent leg injury.Credit to Bader, his speed allowed him to beat out an infield single.

Things just might be turning around for the Yankees.Nestor Cortes wasn't quite at his sharpest, but the offense, perhaps spurred on by their improved play against the Rays, picked their starter up.The team launched a season-high four home runs en route to a mostly stress-free 7-2 victory in the series opener.

This was a tough series to sit through, and if you watched all 36 innings you're a stronger person than yours truly.I did get through all of today's 15-2 drubbing at the hands of the Rangers, their third loss of the series, and the quicker we talk about it, the sooner we can all just move on.It's never a good sign when the offensive highlight of the game is an RBI groundout.

Rejoice!The first pitch of the 2023 season is just over 24 hours away.From the moment the final out of the World Series is converted, the countdown begins for one of the best days of the year - Opening Day - and that day has nearly arrived.The Yankees have been firming up their 26-man roster over the last couple of days.

Well it's been an eventful week, hasn't it?After trading blows with the Rays again, the Yanks went on the road and beat the Blue Jays and Reds to pull into third place in the AL East standings.It's going to be one of those years where each weekly check-in could see the Yankees in a different slot in the division and a different team taking home last place, which I'm sure is going to be frustrating in the long haul but does also make for some highly captivating regular season storylines.

Oswaldo Cabrera was off to an absolutely horrendous start in April.Even with Aaron Hicks, Willie Calhoun, and Franchy Cordero on the roster, it wasn't inconceivable that the team would send Oswaldo down to Triple-A to figure out whatever rut he was in.But luckily for Cabrera, his defense and great performance down the stretch of the 2022 season gave him a longer leash than his peers.

It's one thing to know the end is coming, it's another to wake up to the ending via tweet.Aaron Hicks has officially been designated for assignment, ending an eight-year relationship that saw him among the best center fielders in the game before declining into a player without a role.Even after warming up in the past week or so, Hicks owns a 49 wRC+ and -0.5 fWAR on the season.

Sometimes, even the smallest differences on your roster can be key.They're the little things that help you win ballgames.The Yankees finally cut the cord on Aaron Hicks yesterday in order to bring in former teammate Greg Allen, a role player who isn't a star but is just more useful to New York at this point.

The Yankees designated Aaron Hicks for assignment ahead of their matchup against the Reds at Great American Ball Park.The news broke early this afternoon, with the timing of it being somewhat curious, as the switch-hitting outfielder looked to be turning a corner.The organization announced on Twitter that this move was done to open up a spot for Greg Allen, acquired via trade last night from the Boston Red Sox.

Yankees outfielder Aaron Hicks hasn't been an above-average offensive player since 2020, when he had a 124 wRC+ in 54 games (out of 60) and 211 plate appearances.Between injuries and the natural process of aging, he slumped to 76 and 90 wRC+ finishes in 2021 and 2022 and was, before Friday's game, at an awful 53 in 2023.

With two of their most productive regulars resting, an opener on the mound, and one of the newest Yankees killers opposing them, the Bombers seemed to be behind the eight ball before the series opener even kicked off.That's where proceedings diverged from the script, with Alek Manoah laying an egg and Jimmy Cordero and Jhony Brito combining for 7.1 innings.

When you think of near no-hitters, the ones that come to mind are usually the ones broken up in the ninth inning.Think the Mike Mussina near-perfect game in Fenway Park in 2001.This particular outing from Domingo Germán was close to one, but not in that way.Other that a first-inning hit, Germán then mowed down the Guardians' lineup.

The New York Yankees celebrate on the field after defeating the Cleveland Guardians in Game 5 of an American League Division baseball series, Tuesday, Oct. 18, 2022, in New York.Opening Day for the Yankees is less than two weeks away and Brian Cashman, Aaron Boone and company will have to decide on what the Bombers' roster will look like.

After an opening weekend chock-full of afternoon Grapefruit League action, the Yankees will take the field in Tampa tonight for a primetime matchup against the Tigers.Luis Severino will face a Detroit lineup largely composed of regulars, while the Yankees will put forth a mix of stalwarts, prospects, and depth options against righty Beau Brieske.

Tonight the Blue Jays start a four-game series with the Yankees at Rogers.The Yankees are 23-19, which only has then fourth in the AL East, 2 games back of the Jays and 8 games back of the Rays.The Yankees are eighth in the AL in runs scored per game at 4.57 (Jays are sixth at 4.80).And they are seventh in the AL in runs allowed per game at 4.19 (Jays are eighth at 4.25).

NEW YORK (AP) The A's allowed four runs in the first inning and seven more in the fifth Wednesday afternoon on their way to being swept in a three-game series at Yankee Stadium, this time by a score of 11-3.Manager Mark Kotsay pulled rookie starter Kyle Muller in the fifth inning after he allowed Anthony Rizzo and Aaron Judge to reach base, but the Oakland bullpen couldn't stop the Yankees' onslaught.

After dropping the rubber match of a tough series against the Rays in St. Petersburg this weekend, the Yankees returned home to face the lowly A's in need of a reset before taking on their divisional rivals again later this week.Game one against the AL West cellar-dwellers last night certainly served that purpose, with the Yanks coming out on top in a 7-2 statement victory.

Yankees middle infielder Oswald Peraza connects for a base hit The Yankees needed to make a corresponding move to get Aaron Judge back into the lineup, and that turned out to be placing Oswald Peraza on the 10-day injured list with a right ankle sprain.The stint on the IL will be retroactive to May 6. Peraza had suffered the injury last week during the Yankee 4-3 extra-inning win over the Cleveland Guardians and manager Aaron Boone hinted on Monday that a stint on the IL could be an option for Peraza.

After a competitive but losing weekend at Tropicana Field, the Yankees were happy to return home Monday to begin a three-game set against a bad Oakland team.The Yankees and Athletics find themselves in last place, but the latter has won just eight games in 2023.The Yankees, meanwhile, picked up their 19th win of the year in Monday's series opener, a 7-2 victory that featured four longballs from the Bronx Bombers.

The long winter is finally over and the 2023 baseball season is officially set to begin.While a lot of the faces on the team are familiar and returning, this was as important an offseason as any.Fortunately, things worked out in favor of the Yankees and their fans, and instead of facing an orange-and-black-clad "Arson" Judge, manager Aaron Boone will be penciling in the newest Yankees captain on his lineup card.

The Yankees continued their reset series against the MLB-worst Oakland A's with another dominant win, scoring in bunches once again.They benefitted from some Oakland follies, sure, but Gleyber Torres and Jake Bauers showed some renewed pop while Clarke Schmidt went six innings for the first time in his career.

ESPN | Joon Lee: At long last, Aaron Judge is set to return from a hip injury.It hasn't actually been that long, as Judge has only missed the minimum 10 days on the IL, but it feels as though he's been gone ages, with the Yankees in desperate need of an offensive jolt.Judge says he hasn't felt pain in the hip for several days, so it sounds like it should be all systems go for him from the jump.

The first month of the 2023 Yankees ' season is now in the books.It was a bit of an annoying one as after a solid first couple series, the Yankees slumped over the final couple weeks.They finished April at 15-14, which was tied for fourth in the AL East.This isn't going to be a look back at the Yankees' struggles or successes from March and April.

Another stinker.Let's get through it.The Yankees got out ahead early, with multiple guys contributing to the 6-0 lead.Gerrit Cole wore down, the club blew a golden chance to score in extra innings, and the Rays didn't waste their chance.All three games this weekend were games of inches, but the Yankees just couldn't pull enough of those inches together.

Last night, a tense first battle of the season with divisional rival Tampa Bay ended in a 5-4 defeat for the Yankees.New York hit Rays star Randy Arozarena twice after his home run and ensuing celebration, setting off some tensions.For what it's worth, while Rays' skipper Kevin Cash was thrown out after the umpires issued warnings, both managers downplayed the kerfuffle postgame, insisting there was no intention behind the plunkings (which is entirely plausible given Jhony Brito and Albert Abreu's control issues).

The Yankees certainly need more from Oswaldo Cabrera.After Monday's collective fiasco, the utilityman is hitting .193/.226/.273with one home runs and four steals in 94 plate appearances, "good" enough for a putrid 32 wRC+.There are plenty of reasons to be worried.For example, his 4.3 percent walk rate has been cut in half compared to the 8.8 percent he had in the majors last year.

We had seen this script before.On a day where the eyes of New York were firmly focused on two-time NCAA National Champion Jalen Brunson and the New York Knicks, the New York Yankees appeared to waste yet another solid start from ace Gerrit Cole, as the Cleveland Guardians jumped out to an early 2-0 lead and the Yankees offense looked helpless.

When Franchy Cordero was recalled from the minors just before last night's game with Aaron Judge hitting the IL, there was a feeling of absolute melancholy over potentially having to see Cordero flail in the Yankees ' lineup again.He had looked completely lost since his hot first week, and no one was looking forward to his return, particularly with the MVP out.

It's hard to believe that it's May already - the first month of the season has both flown by and dragged on depending on your perspective as a Yankees fan.With the start of the new month comes the return of our GM approval series, but before we get into evaluations of Brian Cashman, let's review the team's path through April as well as the decision the GM has made in 2023.

Facing one of his last tune ups before the regular season, Clarke Schmidt just didn't have much to fool his opponents in this one.The presumed fifth starter for the Yankees fought through a bunch of contact in this one, while his lineup failed to produce much of their own behind him in a 5-2 loss to the Nationals.

We've reached the point in spring training where most eyes are starting to drift toward the regular season.You could see it in the lineup the Yankees wrote up today, as it was definitely a spring travel squad they sent to Lakeland to face the Tigers.Double-A catcher Rodolfo Duránwas behind the plate, journeymen Wilmer Difo and Billy McKinney were batting sixth and seventh in the lineup, and the likes of Aaron Judge and Anthony Rizzo were left behind in Tampa.

The Rangers may have sustained a devastating blow when Jacob deGrom exited last night's start with forearm tightness, but they still managed to secure a comfortable 5-2 victory over the Yankees.While the Yankees await news on Aaron Judge's hip, we get our first look at Jake Bauers following his call-up earlier this afternoon.

Aaron Judge left Thursday's game due to hip discomfort, and Yankees manager Aaron Boone updated reporters (including Peter Sblendorio of the New York Daily News) today that the star slugger has a mild strain located at the top of his hip.The Yankees will look to make a decision by Monday about whether or not Judge needs a stint on the 10-day injured list to fully heal up, though Boone noted that Judge has " shown a lot of improvements here in the last two days.

New York won the series opener last night versus Texas, but their victory was not the biggest story coming out of that contest.Reigning AL MVP, single-season AL Home Run King, and franchise icon Aaron Judge left the game in fourth inning with right hip discomfort.As of this afternoon, he's headed for an MRI, and an entire organization and fanbase waits with bated breath (as does Jake Bauers on the taxi squad).

Spring training is dead!Long live spring training!It wrapped up in a 3-0 loss at Nationals Park, but what's most important is that everyone escaped the finale with their health intact.Oh, and Nestor Cortes was sharp along the way.Although he failed to record a strikeout, Cortes looked like he won't miss much of a beat when the games actually count the next time he pitches, allowing just two hits and a walk across four innings.

We've reached the point of the spring where it's hard not to just entirely focus on Opening Day later this week.As every day goes by, we get more news on who has or hasn't made the Yankees' roster.On Sunday, the news was exciting, with the announcement that top prospect Anthony Volpe was going to be part of the big league roster.

We have some evening baseball at the Ballpark of the Palm Beaches with the Washington Nationals as the visiting team against the Houston Astros.The Astros will pitch the other Luis Garcia and the Nats have Trevor Williams on the mound.Yesterday's game was a 6.0 inning gem by Nats' starter MacKenzie Gore who struck out eight Yankees' batters in a scoreless outing.

Just like that, there's one full week of spring training left.The competitions in camp became more numerous than originally expected, thanks in no small part to the bevy of injuries that the team sustained throughout the preseason.Still, we're nearing the end of the line for several non-roster invitees and prospect hopefuls looking to snag a spot on the Opening Day team, and thus we have one last push to figure out just what we've learned from this spring.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across Major League Baseball.Each week, we send out questions to the most plugged-in New York Yankees fans, and fans across the country.Sign up here to join Reacts.The Yankees are no stranger to injuries this spring.The rotation, the bullpen, the catching position, and center field.

Good afternoon everyone, it's time to dive back into the mailbag and answer some of your questions.Remember to send in your questions for our weekly call by e-mail to pinstripealleyblog [at] gmail [dot] com.WhittakerWalt asks: Biggest concern continues to be the offense.There's potential for an entire season that looks like our second half of last year.

Luis Severino has struggled so far this spring, having allowed five home runs in his 8.2 innings prior to Wednesday afternoon.In this game, he didn't allow any homers, but it was his control that was an issue in another less-than-stellar outing.He issued a couple walks on the day, several as part of a less-than-stellar first inning.

Last week, when we opened the 2023 edition of Pinstripe Alley's annual Making the Team Meter, we found a Yankees roster that, despite battles for the shortstop and left field positions and the fifth spot in the starting rotation, looked relatively set for Opening Day.Things can change quickly during spring training, however, and over the course of the last seven days, the landscape completely changed: injuries to Carlos Rodón, Tommy Kahnle, and Lou Trivino suddenly opened a plethora of spots on the pitching staff, while Harrison Bader's oblique strain meant that the team has not one but two outfield spots up for grabs.

Center fielder Harrison Bader is the latest name to be bitten by the Yankees injury bug.The former Gold Glove winner is nursing a left oblique strain, effectively ruling him out for Opening Day.Regardless of the severity of the injury, it would not surprise anyone to see Bader kept out of action until at least a few weeks into the 2023 campaign.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across Major League Baseball.Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in New York Yankees fans and fans across the country.Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.After a disastrous four-game sweep at the hands of the Houston Astros that left a sour taste in the mouths of the organization despite what was, overall, a fairly successful year (hey, 99 wins and an ALCS appearance are nothing to sneeze at), the winter was filled with much fear and trepidation.

CBS Sports | Dayn Perry: In case you missed it, the worst-case scenario for Frankie Montas has all but come to pass, as the right-hander will undergo surgery on his throwing shoulder next week.Montas will at best return late in the year, and it's possible he won't pitch at all in 2023.It's not even March, and the Yankees ' pitching depth is already set to be tested.

On Friday afternoon, Luis Severino got the ball for his third tune-up start of the spring.The end result was better than his first couple outings, and as an added bonus, the Yankees took advantage of an unlikely power source to capture a 4-3 win over the Tigers.Severino went with a fastball-heavy approach during the first two innings, hovering around 94-97 mph as he went with the heater for half of his initial 28 pitches.

The 2018-19 offseason was an eventful one for the Yankees.They had the chance to sign not one, but two generational talents in Bryce Harper and Manny Machado.The latter reportedly preferred to go to the Bronx, but the Yanks let other teams take the lead and he ended up signing a 10-year, $300 million contract with the San Diego Padres.

Pitchers and catchers have reported to spring training, and it feels like the 2023 season is just around the bend.The New York Yankees are a good baseball team, with a lot of good players, but it feels fair to say they may not have done enough in the offseason to feel totally safe.They got Aaron Judge to return, and secured a second ace in Carlos Rodón, but the back of the lineup is worrisome.

Gio Urshela arrived in the Yankees organization with zero fanfare - in fact, when he was acquired from the Toronto Blue Jays for cash considerations on August 4, 2018, the move went so far under the radar that we did not even dedicate an article to the move on Pinstripe Alley!Then, during the following spring, our very own Matt Ferenchick did not exactly give him a ringing endorsement for a roster spot when he wrote, "Urshela is by far the least known and least likely person to play for the Yankees in 2019" and "If he has to play for New York this season, something probably has gone seriously wrong."

NorthJersey.com| Pete Caldera: Yankees top prospect Jasson Domínguez earned an invitation to big league camp this spring and he's determined to learn everything he can.He's made a point to observe the veterans around him, absorbing the routines that helped them reach and stick at the major league level.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across Major League Baseball.Each week, we send out questions to the most plugged-in New York Yankees fans, and fans across the country.Sign up here to join Reacts.Today is the day!The first spring training contest is here, kickstarting the 2023 season and the Yankees' chase for a 28th World Series championship.

We have baseball, sort of!With five weeks to go to Opening Day, the Yankees open the exhibition portion of the schedule with a game against the Phillies in Clearwater.The big story today will be Jasson Dominguez, as the Yankees' No. 2 (or No. 3) prospect will see time in the starting lineup and get hacks against an MLB-caliber pitcher in Phillies starter/former Yankee Nick Nelson.

Yesterday, the Yankees kicked off their 2023 spring training schedule, and today we tick another milestone on the road to the regular season.Today, the Yankees are set to play their first split-squad game day.Some of the Yankees will stay at the friendly confines of GMS Field to take on the Braves, while others will be headed on the road to take on the Blue Jays.