Twitter | Mark fine sand:: Former Yankees aide and current free agent David Robertson threw his second showcase for Major League scouts and coaches on Friday. More than a dozen teams traveled to Winter Haven, Florida to watch D-Rob’s throwing session. Robertson is said to be looking good on the hill, according to a tweet from Feinsand who said Robertson’s pitches were “in the 90 to 91 mph range”. Robertson last played in a major league game on April 14, 2019 when he suffered an elbow strain at the end of the season that required surgery on Tommy John. Last season, Robertson didn’t show up on the hill at all due to a setback in rehab after surgery.
New York Daily News | Kristie Ackert: It is official. The 14th annual Gardy Party takes place in the Bronx during the 2021 baseball season. The veteran Yankees outfielder and player with the longest tenure agreed to a $ 4 million one-year contract on Friday with an option for 2022 until a physical contract is signed. Given the Yankees’ desire to stay below the luxury tax threshold and the fact that the team turned down Gardner’s $ 10 million option in November, Gardner’s time in pinstripe seemed to be wavering for much of the off-season.
In addition to being the Yankees’ final link to the 2009 World Cup, Gardner is valued within the organization for his leadership role in the clubhouse. He also adds a left bat to a mostly right-handed Yankees lineup. In a number of past interviews, Gardy has mentioned his desire to remain a Yankee throughout his MLB career. Specifically, Gardner will have to take on a new role on the bench, as Aaron Boone said during Friday’s press conference that Clint Frazier would be the Yankees’ first left outfield in 2021.
MLB.com | Bryan High:: A number of Yankees pitchers, including Zach Britton and Darren O’Day, have commented on the team’s new pitching lab, known as the “Gas Station”. The new state-of-the-art facility is located in the Yankees Player Development Complex in Tampa and has been in operation for a number of years. The gas station is equipped with the latest tech to collect pitching data, including high-speed cameras and pitch tracking tools like Rapsodo and Edgertronics.
According to Lindsey Adler of The Athletic, “the outside of the building [housing the Gas Station] looks like a big blue barn. “The construction of the pitching lab shows how the Yankees have embraced the game’s technological innovation and the pitching philosophy of the new school over the past several years. The gas station offers Yankee pitchers access to the most modern pitch design tools and gives them immediate feedback in areas such as tunneling or the spin efficiency of their pitches.
Orlando Sentinel | Hannah Phillips:: Former Yankees and Red Sox outfielder Johnny Damon was arrested Friday in Windermere, Florida on charges of driving and resisting under the influence of a nonviolent police officer. According to the arrest report, 47-year-old Damon was stopped early Friday morning by a Windermere Police Department officer who saw Damon’s black Lincoln SUV dodge and hit a curb. In an alcohol test, Damon’s blood alcohol level was measured between 0.294 and 0.300 – roughly four times Florida’s legal limit of 0.08. The arrest report also contained a few select statements from Damon during the traffic obstruction and subsequent arrest. After being asked to take a sobriety test, the two-time world champion said he would agree to the test because he is “a big boy”. When Damon was released from Orange County’s proofreading department, he gave his opinion on what it’s like to be behind bars. “The prison is terrible,” he told reporters.
Damon’s wife, Michelle Mangan-Damon, was also arrested during the incident. She was booked for charging a law enforcement officer and for resisting arrest by force.
Damon played for the Yankees from 2006 to 2009.