The Yankees will officially kick off the 2020 MLB season in Washington, D.C., on Thursday night, and earlier that afternoon, they will have to submit their initial 30-man roster, which they can carry for the first two weeks of the season.
In addition, the Yankees, as they start the season on the road, can also determine a three-man taxi squad to bring to D.C., a group that must include one catcher.
Given that the team has already sent 10 players to their alternate camp site in Scranton, Penn., the decisions for paring down from 50 to 30 plus 3 are a little easier, but we’re going to take a crack at what the team that might be on the field Thursday night will look like.
CATCHERS (2+1)Team: Gary Sanchez, Kyle HigashiokaTaxi Squad: Chris Iannetta (NRI) or Erik Kratz (NRI)
These are the only four catchers left in camp, and it’s pretty much a slam dunk at the top: Sanchez is the guy, and Higgy, who is out of options, is the backup. The taxi squad will be the question; Iannetta seems to be the lock, as Kratz would be a better asset as a player/coach of sorts in Scranton, but if Iannetta has an opt-out or bonus the Yankees don’t want to exercise, he may end up gone.
INFIELDERS (7)Team: Luke Voit, DJ LeMahieu, Gleyber Torres, Gio Urshela, Tyler Wade, Miguel Andujar, Mike FordTaxi Squad: None
LeMahieu is technically on the injured list right now, but given that he has played during the Yankees’ exhibition slate, it’s possible he’ll be activated for Opening Day, because even if he needs a day or two to get fully ready, starting on the roster might be more tenable than having to lose a replacement for 10 days after LeMahieu is activated. The starters, then, are set, and Wade and Andujar – who can also play the outfield – are locked in as reserves. Ford, who broke Statcast with his game-tying homer Monday night, is the wild card; because LeMahieu and Andujar can play first, the team could look to carry another utility infielder (likely Thairo Estrada or Matt Duffy) or 16 pitchers instead, but we’re banking on Ford for two reasons: the lefty bat plays anywhere, and Luke Voit is the most likely non-catcher to be pinch-run for if an extra innings situation occurs – leaving an easy “pinch-run with Wade and replace with Ford” option if the game continues.
OUTFIELDERS (6)Team: Aaron Judge, Aaron Hicks, Brett Gardner, Giancarlo Stanton, Mike Tauchman, Clint FrazierTaxi Squad: None
Stanton can be the full-time DH now, so the Yankees can use an extra outfielder – and probably will, given three of their top four are returning from injuries and Gardner is turning 37 next month. Tauchman can play all three spots, and that gives Frazier an opportunity, at least for two weeks, to step in and snag some at-bats. His spot is the most tenuous, as the Yankees could decide that Wade and Andujar’s ability to play the outfield covers them, but given the flexibility they will have with pitchers, Frazier should get a nod (and, in our projection, he and Ford are the easy removals when rosters drop to 28 in two weeks).
STARTERS (5+1)Team: Gerrit Cole, James Paxton, J.A. Happ, Jordan Montgomery, Mike KingTaxi Squad: David Hale (NRI)
As impressive as Clarke Schmidt has been and as much potential as Deivi Garcia has, King’s performance and roster status should earn him the fifth slot for one turn – with the bonus that, when Masahiro Tanaka returns in a week or two, King can slide into Luis Cessa’s hybrid long-relief role until Cessa returns from the COVID-19 I.L. Hale is in a similar boat, and his Yankees experience would likely get him the initial taxi squad nod over someone like Schmidt or Nick Tropeano; if the Yankees need to activate him, he gets the 40-man roster spot opened when Luis Severino went on the long-term I.L.
RELIEVERS (10 + 1)Team: Zack Britton, Adam Ottavino, Tommy Kahnle, Chad Green, Jonathan Holder, Jonathan Loaisiga, Ben Heller, Dan Otero (NRI), Luis Avilan (NRI), Brooks KriskeTaxi Squad: Tyler Lyons (NRI) or Tony Zych (NRI)
Holder moves up the depth chart in Aroldis Chapman’s absence and Loaisiga could be the long reliever/piggyback for King early on, so six spots are easy. Heller is now long-removed from Tommy John surgery and is on the 40-man roster, so he gets spot seven. The team has two open 40-man roster spots with Chapman and Cessa on the COVID IL, and those spots may come down to two mini-competitions, one for a third lefty and one for a low-leverage righty. We give the nods to Otero and Avilan for similar but opposite reasons: Otero goes over Zych simply because the Yankees are deeper on the right-hand side and Zych hasn’t pitched in nearly three years, so he’s more likely to falter and cause a double-dip; however, Avilan gets the nod over Lyons because he seems to be the easier break-up as spots dwindle – the Yankees did have Lyons on their postseason roster last year, which carries weight.
We then give Kriske the last spot for one reason: he’s on the 40-man roster, so it’s easier to remove him (or Heller) from the roster whenever the first injured/infected pitcher returns, because the Yankees ideally have that Severino opening. The Taxi Squad decision comes down to the Yankees’ opponent, going with either lefty Lyons or righty Zych based on the opposing roster.
PROSPECTS IN WAITINGFor now, Hale going on the taxi squad and King and Loaisiga on the team leaves Tropeano, Garcia, Schmidt, and Nick Nelson down in Scranton staying stretched out as the top backup options for the rotation, and they’ll have the taxi squad candidates plus Adonis Rosa ready for the bullpen. Rosell Herrera might have made the team if he was healthy, but he, Duffy, Estrada, and Zack Granite (plus one or both of the backup catchers) give the Yankees solid call-up options in case of injury early on.
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