TAMPA – As the Yankees packed their bags and said goodbye to George M. Steinbrenner Field on Monday, a few players were asked why this season will be different than the team’s disastrous 2023 campaign.
“I can sit here and explain a lot of things, but it comes down to us going out there and doing it,” said Aaron Judge, whose torn toe ligament was one of several hindrances that kept the Yankees out of the playoffs last year. “I could sit here and talk about our new offense and the guys we got, the pitchers we got. But it really comes to us going out there and doing the job. We got to let our game speak for itself, and that’s what we plan on doing this year.”
Judge added that the Yankees had a “different level of focus in all aspects” this spring, and they’re looking to take that into the regular season, which starts on Thursday in Houston with a four-game series against the rival Astros. The captain added that newcomers – the group includes Juan Soto, Alex Verdugo, Trent Grisham and Marcus Stroman – have added “grit” and “edge” to the locker room.
“I think that’s what I’ve noticed so far with a lot of these guys,” Judge continued. “There’s a lot of gamers.”
Clarke Schmidt, who started the Yankees’ final Grapefruit League game on Monday, agreed with Judge’s assessment.
“There’s a really good energy right now,” he said. “Guys are very confident. Guys are healthy, relatively. And then I think it’s just a really good combination of younger guys, older guys, guys who have been there and just a really experienced clubhouse. I’d say that energy is a lot different. I mean, we’ve always been excited, but I feel like there’s some true excitement here now.”
While Schmidt said the Yankees are relatively healthy – perhaps he was comparing to this time last year – third baseman DJ LeMahieu and staff ace Gerrit Cole, among others, will start the season on the injured list.
Cole, the reigning Cy Young winner, will be missed, and his absence has only fueled preexisting questions about the Yankees’ rotation. Many of those stem from injuries and poor performances last season, but the Yankees are hoping that Stroman, Schmidt, Luis Gil, Carlos Rodón and Opening Day starter Nestor Cortes can hold the fort down while Cole recovers from elbow inflammation.
“With almost every team, it comes down to pitching,” said new bench coach Brad Ausmus, who managed the Yankees’ last two Grapefruit games with Aaron Boone and a split squad in Mexico for an exhibition series. “We clearly have the offensive pieces. They still have to go out and do it. But like most baseball clubs, it boils down to how well you pitch.”
Still, the Yankees’ offense needs to step up after injuries and underachievers also plagued the lineup in 2023.
Soto should make a significant difference in that regard.
“He’s gonna go out there and play every single day,” Judge said. “He’s gonna battle through things. He’s gonna be a gamer. He’s gonna work at-bats, be tough.”
Another long season awaits, but the Yankees, new and old, will get their first crack at showing why 2024 will be different when they take the field at Minute Maid Park on Thursday. Judge is looking forward to the Opening Day challenge — and the chance to put 2023 in the rearview mirror.
“When you go up against a good team like Houston to start off, you gotta be ready to go,” he said. “You gotta be on your toes. So I think everybody in this room realizes that, and we’re gonna show up and do our thing.”