Results tagged ‘ Spring Training ’

My Impression of Tampa

I visited the Yankees spring training camp on Wednesday, March 3rd. Here are some observations:

1. AJ Burnett has visibly changed his pitching mechanics. Last year he had a drastic twist toward second base when he kicked his front leg. This caused him to be inconsistent with the direction of stride (not always toward home plate). Also, by incorporating this twist, his timing had to be perfect with the arm. I think many times he got caught, where the arm would drag and his pitches would flatten out. This spring he has limited these extraneous movements. His delivery looks clean and repeatable, which should translate into more quality strikes. 
2. Before the game against the Astros, I watched Brett Gardner, Curtis Granderson, Ramiro Pena and Greg Golson work for an hour on bunting (sacrifices and bunting for a hit). Although it is early in spring, Gardner still does not look 100% comfortable with this; he still fouls off and pops up way to many pitches. As a fan, it is frustrating that Gardner is not better at bunting. With his plus speed, getting the ball down anywhere in fair territory except back to the pitcher would give him 10-15 additional hits per season. I hope that he is eventually able to develop this skill as it would make him a more complete ballplayer.  Maybe the ghost of Phil Rizzuto will make an appearance in Tampa and show him how it is done.
3. I hate to use a cliche, but the ball does sound different off of the bat of Jesus Montero. The swing is effortless and the ball jumps. As much as I like Francisco Cervelli, I think that Montero will break camp with the Yankees and make the transition from prospect to bona fide big leaguer.  

First Impressions

Spring is finally upon us. Pitchers, catchers and position players have reported to Spring Training, gone through the reps of fielding ground balls and PFP on obscure back fields, and now have progressed to playing out the Grapefruit and Cactus schedule.

The Yankees opened up against the Phillies yesterday in Tampa. After watching the game (courtesy of YES), here are a few take-aways:

1. For a first outing in Spring Training, both Bartolo Colon and Joba Chamberlain looked good. For Colon, he appeared to be throwing the ball free and easy (important considering his battle with arm injuries over the past few years). He is a little further along building up arm strength than most in camp (he pitched in the Dominican Winter League), but I am still impressed with his velocity. His fastball sat consistently at 90-92 with a high of 93. He also showcased a decent sinker/two seamer. For Chamberlain, the adjustment he made with his mechanics (arms lower at belt rather than chest high in set position) have really improved the life on his fastball and the bite on his slider. His arm is finally in sync with his body, rather than dragging behind and causing pitches to flatten out.

 

2. Derek Jeter looks comfortable with his revamped hitting mechanics. During his slump last season, Jeter had too many moving parts in his swing. Specifically, I’m referring to the double tap that he employed with his lead foot and then a long stride toward home plate. The double tap was a timing mechanism which left little room for error, while the stride toward the plate prevented him from opening his hips up and taking a direct path to the inside pitch. This spring he has completely removed the stride, utilizing a toe lift to start the load of the hands and weight.

 

3. Alex Rodriguez appears to be in great shape. You can definitely see that he has lost 10 lbs this off season (attributed to the hip being healed and finally able to train rather than rehab). Although he put up above average numbers over the past two seasons, I think we may see Rodriguez re-establish himself as one of the elite players in baseball.

Hit Against the Grain

I’m not sure if you noticed, but many players are swinging two-toned bats this spring. This stood out as more than a coincidence on my trip to Tampa and Ft. Myers so I did some research to figure out why. It turns out that the two-toned color is part of the new regulation issued by MLB on maple bats for the upcoming season.

USA Today had a great piece where they broke down all the guidelines and got reactions from many players. The part that I found most interesting regards the new placement of the label. Up until this season, the label has always been placed against the grain on ash and maple bats. Hitters are taught that they must hold the bat with the label up. This will ensure that contact is made with the grain (the harder side of the wood). MLB conducted a study and found that with maple, the bat is stronger by swinging it against the grain. Thus, not only are these bats two-toned, but the label has also been moved 90 degrees. Many hitters, including Ryan Howard and Darrin Erstad are not buying it. I wonder if this will push them back to ash, or force them to simply rotate the bat so that the label faces the pitcher.

2009 Official Spring Training Roster

Thanks to Peter Abraham, here is the Yankees 2009 Spring Training Roster:

 

2 Derek Jeter INF

11 Brett Gardner OF

12 Cody Ransom INF

13 Alex Rodriguez INF

14 Angel Berroa INF

17 Shelley Duncan INF/OF

18 Johnny Damon OF

19 Kevin Cash C

20 Jorge Posada C

22 Xavier Nady OF

24 Robinson Cano INF

25 Mark Teixeira INF

26 Jose Molina C

27 Joe Girardi MGR

28 Melky Cabrera OF

29 Kei Igawa LHP

30 David Robertson RHP

31 Ian Kennedy RHP

33 Nick Swisher OF/INF

34 A.J. Burnett RHP

36 Edwar Ramirez RHP

38 Brian Bruney RHP

39 Dan Giese RHP

40 Chien-Ming Wang RHP

41 Jose Veras RHP

42 Mariano Rivera RHP

43 Damaso Marte LHP

45 Jason Johnson RHP

46 Andy Pettitte LHP

47 John Rodriguez OF

48 Phil Coke LHP

50 Mick Kelleher Coach

52 CC Sabathia LHP

54 Kevin Long Coach

55 Hikeki Matsui OF

56 Tony Pena Coach

57 Mike Harkey Coach

58 Dave Eiland Coach

59 Rob Thomson Coach

60 Todd Linden OF

61 Sergio Mitre RHP

62 Joba Chamberlain RHP

63 Jonathan Albaladejo RHP

64 Andrew Brackman RHP

65 Phil Hughes RHP

66 J.B. Cox RHP

67 Anthony Claggett RHP

68 Wilkin De La Rosa LHP

70 Christian Garcia RHP

71 Eric Hacker RHP

72 Juan Miranda INF

73 Doug Bernier INF

74 Justin Leone INF

75 Francisco Cervelli C

76 Kevin Russo INF

77 Humberto Sanchez RHP

78 Mark Melancon RHP

79 Colin Curtis OF

80 Steven Jackson RHP

81 Kyle Anson C

82 Austin Jackson OF

83 Jesus Montero C

84 Austin Romine C

85 Michael Dunn LHP

86 P.J. Pilittere C

90 Ramiro Pena INF

91 Alfredo Aceves RHP

92 Eduardo Nunez INF

93 George Kontos RHP

94 Kanekoa Texeira RHP

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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