Steinbrenner consults Judge on Yankees’ issues

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2 years ago

March 16, 2023

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1:07 PM ET

TAMPA, Fla. — New York Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner values his relationship with slugger Aaron Judge and asks the new captain about various team-related issues, such as possible renovations of the team’s spring training facility. Recently, he picked Judge’s brain about Anthony Volpe, the dynamic prospect who is competing to be the team’s shortstop.

“I’ve heard from other players, including Aaron Judge, that [Volpe] conducts himself in a very professional way for somebody his age,” Steinbrenner said Wednesday morning, “and that’s good, because he’s going to need all of that, to play where we play.”

Judge famously turned down the Yankees’ offer of $213.5 million last spring before he had one of the most productive seasons of all time, breaking the AL record of 62 homers. After the season, Steinbrenner got personally involved in the negotiations with Judge — and, as Judge neared his decision, Steinbrenner increased his offer from $320 million to $360 million in an overnight call with the Judge. And he named Judge to be the franchise’s first captain since Derek Jeter.

“Judge and I have a good relationship,” Steinbrenner said. “I asked him about a lot of things. We’re getting ready to look at some renovations of [the spring training] stadium, he’s involved with that. Yes, I ask him about different players.”

Steinbrenner also addressed the team’s recent wave of injuries; the Yankees’ payroll; and the spike in salaries for the high-end free agents. In light of the offseason deals for superstar players such as Judge, Steinbrenner offered an amendment to his years-old statement that you shouldn’t have to have a $200 million payroll to win a World Series. The more appropriate context in this era, Steinbrenner suggested through a wry smile, is that you don’t need a $300 million payroll to win a championship. The Yankees’ projected payroll is just shy of $300 million.

“Times have changed, I acknowledge that,” Steinbrenner said.

Earlier this spring, Pirates owner Bob Nutting said that parts of the new collective bargaining agreement, forged between MLB and the players’ union just a year ago, do not work for the Pirates, just the latest indication of the growing unhappiness among some small-market teams. Steinbrenner said, “Why are we talking about this right now? We’re one year into a labor deal. We’ve got all of these great rules changes that are going to make the game even better and more exciting. Right in the middle of spring training, right before Opening Day — I’m not focused on (the CBA).”

The Yankees have already lost pitcher Carlos Rodon, center fielder Harrison Bader and catcher Jose Trevino to injuries this spring, along with a half-dozen others.

“I guess I could be glass half-full and say ‘Get them out of the way now’ rather than deal with what we had last year, in July and even August … That was a bad case scenario. I don’t want to do that again,” Steinbrenner said.

“For the first half of the year last year, we had one of the most dominant — if not the most dominant — teams in baseball,” he continued, “and then the injuries hit us. That team, for the most part, is intact. Most of them are back. The one question we asked ourselves was, is our starting rotation good enough to beat certain teams in the American League, and we reached the consensus we needed more — and that’s why we got Carlos [Rodon].

“Do I think we’re good enough to win a championship? Yes. But we’ve got to stay healthy.”

Rodon was diagnosed last week with what the team termed a “mild” elbow strain, and this will sideline the left-hander through the start of the regular season. Steinbrenner said he spoke with Rodon in the trainer’s room this week, and that the pitcher’s range of motion has already improved markedly. “I think he’s going to be great for us,” Steinbrenner said.

Soon, the Yankees will make a choice about who to install at shortstop at the start of the season. Earlier this week, Isiah Kiner-Falefa — the team’s regular shortstop last year — began taking fly balls in the outfield, perhaps preparing for a transition into a utility player. Executives from other teams say Kiner-Falefa is available in trade, with some rival evaluators going so far as to say they believe the veteran will be dealt soon.

The Yankees seem to be headed toward a choice between Oswald Peraza, who made his major league debut last year, or Volpe, who has been one of the team’s best performers this spring, batting .321 with four doubles, two homers and three steals. Volpe, 21, was the 30th overall pick in the 2019 draft, has greatly impressed veterans with his demeanor and confidence. There is a widespread belief in the organization that if Volpe opens the year in the big leagues and struggles early in his career — and that is not uncommon for a young player — that he has the mental strength to cope with some failure.

In one spring game, Volpe stole second base and then third base on consecutive pitches — a moment that impressed the owner.

Steinbrenner acknowledged that sometime in the next week, the team’s staffers will assess the shortstop competition, and that Steinbrenner will be involved in those discussions. In recent decades, some teams have chosen to suppress elite prospects in the minor leagues to manipulate their service time. Steinbrenner said that service time would not be a factor in the shortstop choice. The final decision belongs to general manager Brian Cashman and manager Aaron Boone, Steinbrenner reiterated, but Volpe “is obviously having a great spring … He’s certainly shown, at least on this spring training stage, that he can handle it, play well and do a lot of different things.”

The team’s young players, Steinbrenner said, have stood out to him this spring, from Volpe to Peraza to outfielders Oswaldo Cabrera and Jasson Dominguez, the powerful young outfielder.

“It’s exciting for me, personally, because I’ve followed these kids for years,” Steinbrenner said. “For me, it’s always exciting, particularly when it’s someone’s first spring training, like Volpe, that they perform and that they perform well, and that they impress guys like Judge, which is what they’re doing.”

Steinbrenner was booed at Yankee Stadium last year by fans who are impatient for another championship. Fourteen years have passed since the Yankees won a World Series in 2009, and fans often invoke the specter of Hal Steinbrenner’s hyperaggressive father, George Steinbrenner, in criticizing Hal.

Failing to reach the World Series, Hal Steinbrenner said, bothers him “every year. It bothered my dad for 18 years or whatever it was. It’s what our fans expect. The best we can do is to field a team that can win a championship, and that’s what we try to do every year.”

Sports

‘Really cool’: Cubs launch franchise-record 8 HRs

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11 hours ago

July 5, 2025

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'Really cool': Cubs launch franchise-record 8 HRs

Jesse RogersJul 4, 2025, 08:16 PM ET
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CHICAGO — Fireworks in Chicago began early on Independence Day as the Cubs set a franchise record for a single game, hitting eight home runs on Friday, including three from first baseman Michael Busch in a rout of the St. Louis Cardinals.

“Especially to do it at Wrigley Field,” Busch said after the 11-3 win. “It’s really cool. I think that was my first three-homer game, ever. That’s one game I’ll never forget.”

Busch, 27, took Cardinals starter Miles Mikolas deep in the second and third innings then set a career mark with his third home run in the seventh off reliever John King. It was the first time a Cubs player hit three home runs in a game since Rafael Ortega on Aug. 1, 2021.

Busch wasn’t the only Cub to hit multiple home runs as Pete Crow-Armstrong hit two after making a diving catch in the first inning. Both Busch and Crow-Armstrong went 4-for-4 on the day, driving in seven of the team’s 11 runs. Busch drove in five.

The Cubs have been near the top of the league in most offensive rankings since early in the season as they extended their lead on the Cardinals to 6.5 games.

“It’s really easy to appreciate what we’re doing right now,” Crow-Armstrong said. “It’s also easy to just keep it going and not let that be something that we are dwelling on. It’s the best offense I’ve ever been a part of.”

Also homering for the Cubs on their record-setting day was designated hitter Seiya Suzuki, catcher Carson Kelly and shortstop Dansby Swanson. Manager Craig Counsell was asked to put the day in perspective considering the lengthy history of the franchise. It came a day after they beat the Cleveland Guardians 1-0.

“It’s the sport,” Counsell said with a smile. “It took us 10 innings to score one run yesterday. That’s what’s crazy about it. That’s why you turn the page every single day. We had a really good day, today.”

Mikolas set a Cardinals franchise record, giving up six of the eight home runs — all of which came in the first three innings. The Cardinals did break a scoreless streak on offense extending back to last Sunday when second baseman Brendan Donovan homered in the fourth inning. St. Louis scored two more times in the ninth off Cubs infielder Jon Berti, but by then the game was in hand.

Busch is the third Cubs player with a three-home run game against the Cardinals. In an odd twist, all three did it on Independence Day: Moises Alou on July 4, 2003, and Hank Leiber on July 4, 1939, according to ESPN Research.

Sports

Different Soto propels Mets to Subway Series win

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11 hours ago

July 5, 2025

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Different Soto propels Mets to Subway Series win

Jorge CastilloJul 4, 2025, 08:55 PM ET
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NEW YORK — Juan Soto‘s second Subway Series experience in a Mets uniform was a far cry from his first.

In mid-May, Soto received a three-day onslaught of boos from scorned crowds in his return to Yankee Stadium and looked increasingly uncomfortable as the weekend progressed. On Friday, he felt right at home in the teams’ series opener at Citi Field, receiving a standing ovation from his home crowd before his first at-bat and reciprocating the love with a signature performance against his former team.

The soon-to-be five-time All-Star went 3-for-4 with a home run, double and single, falling just a triple shy of the cycle in the Mets’ 6-5 comeback win over the Yankees to continue his scalding stretch over the past month as the Mets won their third consecutive game and the Yankees lost their fifth straight.

“That was awesome,” said second baseman Jeff McNeil, who slashed a go-ahead two-run home run in the seventh inning. “He had a great day. Huge home run. That’s just who he is. It’s fun to watch and I feel like every time he comes to the plate, he’s going to do something cool.”

The day began with the Mets needing a quick counter after the Yankees took a two-run lead on back-to-back home runs from Jasson Dominguez and Aaron Judge to open the game and put rookie Justin Hagenman on his heels in his first career major league start. Soto, moments after absorbing the warm reception, delivered one, lifting a two-run home run to left-center field for his 21st of the season to tie the score and put Hagenman at ease.

“Juan responded right away, just getting the momentum right back,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “That was the setting-the-tone moment. ‘OK, they punch, we’re going to punch back. Here we are.'”

The 26-year-old Soto followed the two-run blast with a 108.6-mph rope of a double to center field in the third inning and a single in the fifth before cracking a 106.8-mph flyout in his final at-bat in the seventh. Two batters later, McNeil, after Pete Alonso walked to extend the inning, drove a changeup from Luke Weaver down the right-field line to give the Mets the lead.

“I just feel good right now,” Soto said. “I’m seeing the ball really well. I feel like I’m trying to take my chances when I swing the bat. I’m trying to do damage every time and try to help the team win some games.”

Much is different from the first time the Mets and Yankees met this season. Both teams have fallen from first place following dreadful stretches stemming from June 12. Both teams are dealing with various injuries to pitchers, the Mets to a greater extent. And Soto, a Yankee last season, has returned to his usual form for his new club.

Soto emerged from that three-game set in the Bronx earlier in the season with a .246 batting average and .822 OPS on the season. The relative struggles continued over the next two weeks, sinking his batting average to .229 and his OPS to .797 through June 5. The relative struggles drew the ire of fans and New York talk radio. The early return on the Mets’ $765 million investment was one of the few blips in the team’s splendid start.

The storyline has since flipped. Since June 6, Soto is hitting .348 with 10 home runs and a 1.185 OPS in 27 games, earning National League Player of the Month honors for June. On the season, his 21 home runs are tied for ninth in the majors and his .916 OPS is seventh. It’s production the Mets expected — and the production the Yankees know all about.

“It’s pretty special,” Mendoza said. “Every time he’s at the plate, you feel good about your chances. And when we got guys that are getting on base and we’re turning the lineup over and getting him at the plate as many times [as possible] when he’s going like that, it’s a pretty special feeling.”

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Raleigh ties M’s record with 35 HRs before break

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11 hours ago

July 5, 2025

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Raleigh ties M's record with 35 HRs before break

ESPN News Services

Jul 4, 2025, 08:14 PM ET

SEATTLE — Cal Raleigh hit his 34th and 35th home runs to set a career high and match Ken Griffey Jr.’s Seattle record for homers before the All-Star break, helping the Mariners beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-0 on Friday.

Raleigh, the major league leader in home runs, turned on a fastball from Bailey Falter (6-4) in the first inning and walloped it well past the wall in left. The exit velocity on the two-run shot was logged at 115.2 mph, per Statcast, making it the hardest-hit ball of his career.

Raleigh topped his previous career high for homers, set last season, in the sixth with a solo shot that chased Falter. The Mariners mustered only one other hit off the left-hander, but it was also a home run courtesy of Randy Arozarena in the fourth inning.

Raleigh’s 35 homers are tied for the fifth most in MLB history before the All-Star break (since 1933), matching Griffey in 1998 and Luis Gonzalez in 2001. Barry Bonds holds the record with 39 at the break in 2001.

Raleigh said he was honored to tie Griffey, whom he called the face of the Mariners.

“To be mentioned with that name, somebody that’s just iconic, a legend, first-ballot Hall of Famer, I’m just blessed,” Raleigh said. “Trying to do the right thing and trying to keep it rolling. If I can try to be like that guy, it’s a good guy to look up to.”

Raleigh is on pace to hit 65 home runs this season, which would break New York Yankees star Aaron Judge‘s American League record of 62, set in 2022.

Manager Dan Wilson, who was a teammate of Griffey Jr.’s in 1998, tried to put Raleigh’s fast start to 2025 in perspective.

“It’s remarkable. It feels like he hits a home run every game, that’s what it feels like,” Wilson said. “And I can remember feeling it as a player, that [Griffey] just felt like he hit a home run every day. Again, that’s the consistency that [Raleigh] has shown. It hasn’t been a streak where he has hit a bunch of home runs in a short amount of time. It’s been kind of 10 per month.”

A switch-hitter, Raleigh has more home runs as a left-handed hitter and as a right-handed hitter than anyone else on the Mariners: He has 21 from the left side and 14 from the right. Arozarena ranks second on Seattle with 13 homers this season.

The Mariners play eight more games before the All-Star break.

The Associated Press and ESPN Research contributed to this report.