The Yankees started the season with a six-game West Coast trip, a trip that, by any objective measure, could not have gone much better.
Even with Aaron Judge off to a slow start, the vast majority of the roster, the starting pitchers in particular, contributed to a 5-1 trip. After Thursday’s off day, one the Yankees were very much looking forward to because their journey west actually started early with two exhibition games March 23-24 in Mesa, Arizona, against the Cubs, they finally play at home on Friday. Here are five things to watch in the home opener against the Marlins:
For starters
Will Warren starts Friday and will be accompanied by this question: can he keep it going?
The “it” being a historic performance from the rotation, Warren included, which allowed all of two runs in the first six games, the fewest by any club’s starting rotation through its first six games of a season (since 1900).
“I mean, what a week of pitching,” manager Aaron Boone said.
The bullpen, though it allowed three runs Wednesday, came into the day having allowed one run in its previous 17 innings. Collectively, Yankees pitchers have yet to allow a homer, making them the only staff in the majors not to allow a long ball this season. The organization felt better about its top-to-bottom pitching leaving spring training than it has in years and, based on early returns, it had good reason to.
Not so gentle Ben
Ben Rice, because of the consistency with which he blistered baseballs a year ago, quickly became a fan favorite. And the now full-time first baseman has done nothing to dissipate that feeling the first six games. The left-handed hitting Rice finished off a strong trip west on Wednesday by going 2-for-3 with a homer and a double, giving him a 7-for-17 start to his season. The 27-year-old, who has hit three doubles, scored six runs and driven in five, reached base safely in each of his five games (Rice did not start last Friday’s game in San Francisco against Giants lefthander Robbie Ray). The Yankees made a point all offseason of saying they envisioned Rice as their everyday first baseman. He’s done nothing the first week, even as he still experiences the occasional growing pains learning what is still a new position, to think he won’t hold on to it.
Big start by Big G
Giancarlo Stanton, the Yankees’ 36-year-old DH whose injury history since joining the club before the 2018 season has been well-documented – he’s spent time on the IL each year from 2019-25 – had a healthy and productive spring. It’s been more of the same one week into the regular season. Stanton, given Wednesday afternoon off, recorded multiple hits in each of the Yankees’ first five games for a 10-for-20 start. He became the fourth player in franchise history to have multiple hits in each of the Yankees’ first five games of season, joining Alfonso Soriano (2003), Bill Skowron (1956) and Bob Meusel (1928), the latter trio each doing it the first six games of those respective seasons. “He’s been one of the best hitters in the game for a long time,” veteran lefty Max Fried said of Stanton, who has one homer, two doubles and is 4-for-6 with RISP.
Could Aaron Judge get booed?
This, of course, would seem an absurd question except…it can’t be ruled out. He actually heard, remarkably, a smattering of boos at the end of spring training in Tampa, and his rough start to the season puts that possibility in play for the home opener should it carry over. Judge went 0-for-5 with four strikeouts in the March 25 opener in San Francisco, causing some fans and media to lose their collective minds, the perspective of 1-of-162 being lost on far too many. The three-time AL MVP assuredly will hear the loudest cheers during pregame introductions. But one senses, with Judge 3-for-24 with 11 strikeouts in the first six games, that a couple of ugly plate appearances, especially one in a critical situation, could turn that around.
Better weather
The forecast for the home opener some seven days ago looked, well, foul. The forecast, however, now calls for some clouds but temperatures in the mid-60s.
“Looks like a pretty good day,” Boone said. “A week ago looking out to that day, it looked like cold and drizzly and all that. Seems like that forecast has been steadily improving the last couple of days so looks like Friday and Saturday have a chance to be really nice days back there. Always exciting to have opening day in the Bronx and at Yankee Stadium.”
It will certainly feel far better for the players than the series in Seattle, where the real-feel temperature for all three games was in the low to mid-40s.
Erik Boland started in Newsday’s sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.