TAMPA, Fla — The Yankees and the Nationals squared off for the first night game at GMS this spring. The Yankees took this one 7-0. They faced the minimum 27 batters in the game as a pitching staff.
Notes/Observations:
— Ryan Weathers made his first start for the Yankees. He was spectacular. He struck out five while allowing just one hit, that was erased by a double play.
His velocity was there, hitting 100 once or twice, and his sinker sitting at 96.7 MPH on the night. The issue for Weathers has never been the stuff, it’s been the injuries. If Weathers can stay healthy, his stuff is electric and he becomes as big an asset as any.
“I think one of the biggest things for me over the past few years was landing my breaking ball” He said to the YES Network after his start.
— Amed Rosario lead the game off with a solo home run. He continues to crush left-handed pitching. The Yankees having Rosario for a full season is going to be transformative. Ryan McMahon struggles against left-handed pitching and having Rosario to take those reps instead will improve the Yankees as a whole.
— George Lombard Jr. put on a show. At the plate, he went 1-2 with a walk and a two-run double that was 108.1 MPH off the bat.
He did not have the best offensive season at AA last year. His glove is “MLB ready”, according to Aaron Boone, but the offense “needs work”. Seeing Lombard hit the ball as hard as he did in the situation he had the hit in is super promising.
— The Yankees, to their credit, capitalized off of a lot of Nationals errors. There were plays by the Nats tonight where they looked clueless. I have never seen anything like it — even in spring. Carrying this over into the regular season is important because the Yankees will need some luck at times to win ball games and being able to cash in on mistakes is key.