The Yankees officially opened Grapefruit League play with a 6-5 loss to the Pirates this afternoon. Season over, obviously. Jacoby Ellsbury was the headliner on offense, beating out an infield single and drawing two walks. Carlos Beltran went hitless in three at-bats (one strikeout) while Brian McCann singled and struck out in his two at-bats. Bench candidate Yangervis Solarte had a nice game, going 2-for-3 with a homer.
The box score is right here. Ivan Nova allowed two runs on two hits and two walks in 1.1 innings before hitting his pitch limit. Dellin Betances struck out a pair in two scoreless innings as he tries to make a case for a bullpen job. Chase Whitley and Preston Claiborne combined to allow four runs in the seventh, blowing the team’s three-run lead. Cesar Cabral retired both lefties he faced, one on a strikeout. Here’s the rest of the day’s news from Tampa.
- Both Eduardo Nunez (flu) and Jose Ramirez (back) were scratched from today’s game. Ramirez was scheduled to pitch, but his back tightened up in the bullpen. He’ll be looked at tomorrow. [Bryan Hoch, Chad Jennings]
- Jennings has the day’s workout groups. Michael Pineda and Manny Banuelos threw live batting practice while Adam Warren, CC Sabathia, Hiroki Kuroda, and Masahiro Tanaka threw bullpen sessions. Warren is scheduled to start Friday’s game while the last three guys will all pitch Saturday.
- Joe Girardi said Mark Teixeira and his surgically repaired right wrist is still at least a week away from playing in a game. His return to game action has always been targeted for early-March, so he’s still on schedule. [Meredith Marakovits]
- Alfonso Soriano, meanwhile, worked out again today and it looks like he’ll play in his first Spring Training game on March 2nd. He missed a few days with the flu and is just now getting back into the swing of things. [Marakovits]
- Francisco Rondon is a “little sore” and has been shut down. Apparently it is his shoulder. Matt Daley will miss a few days with calf problem. [Jennings]
Here is your open thread for the night. The Nets are playing and later tonight MLB Network will re-air this afternoon’s Dodgers-Diamondbacks game, if you’re jonesin’ for some baseball. Talk about those games or anything else right here.
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