TAMPA, FLORIDA – New York Yankees outfielders Curtis Granderson and Brett Gardner could be switching positions.
Granderson worked out in left field Thursday and the speedy Gardner switched to center.
“I think it has a chance to help us a little bit, but I’m not really sure,” manager Joe Girardi said. “That’s why I’ve said from the beginning that I’m going to toy with it. I’m not saying today that this is what it’s going to be Opening Day.”
Girardi plans to play the pair together in upcoming spring training games.
“See if we like it,” Girardi said. “If we do, we’ll stay with it. If we don’t, we won’t.”
Granderson also will get some playing time in center.
“I would love to play center. That’s what I’ve been playing. At the same time, I want to play in general,” Granderson said. “No matter where that happens to be, that’s where I want to be at. You never know unless you try things out. We don’t know what the best way is going to be.”
Gardner still thinks of himself as center fielder, a spot where he has previous experience.
“For the last few years I’ve been playing left, and that’s fine with me,” he said. “If we went out there and played right now, I would go to center, I would go to left, it doesn’t really matter to me.”
Ichiro Suzuki homered off compatriot Hiroki Kuroda during batting practice and tipped his helmet toward the fans after an ovation.
Derek Jeter, coming back from ankle surgery, continued taking part in defensive drills and faced right-hander Jim Miller in BP. He took six pitches, hit a liner to right and fouled a ball in the batting cage. Jeter is jogging on and off the field but hasn’t started a full outdoor running program.
Second baseman Robinson Cano and first baseman Mark Teixeira are among the position players scheduled to play in Saturday’s game against Atlanta at Kissimmee.
WBC rosters finalized
AP
Triple Crown winner Miguel Cabrera, World Series MVP Pablo Sandoval and Cy Young knuckleballer R.A. Dickey are among 45 major league all-stars on the rosters for the World Baseball Classic.
The final rosters were announced Thursday. The 16-team tournament begins next month.
There are seven players who have won MVP awards, including Cabrera, Joe Mauer, Joey Votto and Miguel Tejada.
Japan won the first two WBC tournaments. This year’s Japanese team does not include any players from Major League Baseball.
Ryan Braun, David Wright and Giancarlo Stanton are among the stars on the U.S. team. Jose Reyes, Robinson Cano and free agent Jose Valverde lead the Dominican Republic.
The Italian team includes Yankees minor leaguer Pat Venditte, who is an ambidextrous pitcher.
Schmidt helping Phillies
AP
Mike Schmidt always enjoys his visit to spring training, watching the Philadelphia Phillies practice and giving tips to hitters here and there.
This year, the Hall of Fame third baseman said, things are a bit different.
First off, Schmidt will be sticking around until March 20, his longest stay in a long while.
But secondly, and most importantly, Schmidt says he sees a different team.
Ryan Howard is seeking out his advice more than ever. Schmidt called newcomer Michael Young a possible first-ballot Hall of Famer if his career ended today, and compared the third baseman to Derek Jeter.
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