NYY news: An early 26-man roster prediction

Feb 5, 2023 - 5:00 AM

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Newsday | Erik Boland: As spring training draws closer, Boland offered an early 26-man roster prediction with five starters, eight relievers, and 13 position players. Of course, it goes without saying that things can change in a hurry in the event of trades, signings, and injuries.

He predicts Domingo Germán winning the fifth starter job and Clarke Schmidt starting the season in the minor leagues, with Albert Abreu winning a bullpen spot. Position player-wise, he sees both Josh Donaldson and Aaron Hicks as Opening Day starters at third base and left field, respectively, with Oswaldo Cabrera and Isiah Kiner-Falefa going to the bench. He does have Oswald Peraza as the starting shortstop.

FanGraphs | Esteban Rivera: Our very own Esteban Rivera reminds us that the only thing separating us from watching an elite season from Giancarlo Stanton is health. He explains that the lower body injuries he suffered last year affected his mechanics and, therefore, his ability to feast on fastballs like he usually does.

He points out that, if fully healthy and able to use his lower body to stay connected to the ground, he could get back to being a 130-140 wRC+ hitter. The most important takeaway is this, however: “he will need to be conscious of how any injury impacts his swing as he enters the latter half of his career.”

New York Daily News | Matthew Roberson: Frankie Montas will be out for the first month of the season, at the very least. That creates a spring training battle between Germán and Schmidt for the fifth starter gig, and Roberson explains that the former’s seniority and experience will be factors in any decision. As the author writes, it could be Germán’s last chance to be a starting pitcher for the Yankees. If he does indeed win the job, he would be pitching not only for New York, but it could also be considered an audition for other teams.

NJ Advance Media | Bridget Hyland: MLB Pipeline recently published its top 100 prospects list, with several Yankees on it. In the form of additional, complementary content, they also wrote about the best prospects not on the top 100 list, and Everson Pereira made it.

They suggest that depending on performance, injuries and graduations, Pereira – who they called one of the best all-around players in the 2017 international class – has the potential to crack the top 100 at some point. Anthony Volpe, Jasson Dominguez and Oswald Peraza made MLB Pipeline’s top-100 list.