NEW YORK (AP) — The New York Yankees' players and staff are restlessness. So are fans. A 5-10 start, the franchise's worst in 24 years, has shaken a team that expects to contend for a World Series title. “Right now we would be a team that an opponent would want to play because obviously we’re not firing on all cylinders,” general manager Brian Cashman said Monday. “So if you have a chance to catch us right now, you’re catching us at the right time, through obviously yesterday’s games, and we look forward to that changing.” Batting, pitching and fielding have faltered. New York’s .210 batting average is next-to-last in the American League, and a team with a dearth of left-handed hitters is batting just .202 against right-handed pitchers. The Yankees’ 55 runs entering Monday tied Detroit for the AL low. Ace Gerrit Cole is 2-1 with a 1.82 ERA and the rest of New York’s starters are 1-6 with a 6.39 ERA. Twelve errors have led to 10 unearned runs. Only the bullpen, which has a 2.43 ERA that... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Jay Bruce had seen enough. Having made the New York Yankees' opening-day roster, he couldn't stomach his poor start to the season. So the three-time All-Star outfielder decided to retire Sunday, just 15 days past his 34th birthday. “Just the consistent underperformance for me,” he said before the game against Tampa Bay, his voice quavering at times. “Felt like I wasn’t able to do it at a level that was acceptable for myself.” Bruce informed Yankees manager Aaron Boone of his decision during a 20-minute meeting in the manager’s office on Friday, then made a public announcement before Sunday’s game. He received an ovation when shown on the video board before the eighth inning but did not get in the game. Bruce went to spring training with the Yankees on a minor league contract and made the major league roster as a first baseman when Luke Voit injured a knee, earning a $1.35 million one-year deal. He hit .118 with one homer and three RBIs in 39 plate appearances this year.... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Jay Bruce had seen enough. Having made the New York Yankees' opening-day roster, he couldn't stomach his poor start to the season. So the three-time All-Star outfielder decided to retire Sunday, just 15 days past his 34th birthday. “Just the consistent underperformance for me,” he said before the game against Tampa Bay, his voice quavering at times. “Felt like I wasn’t able to do it at a level that was acceptable for myself.” Bruce informed Yankees manager Aaron Boone of his decision during a 20-minute meeting in the manager’s office on Friday, then made a public announcement before Sunday’s game. Bruce received an ovation when shown on the video board before the eighth inning but did not get in the game. Bruce went to spring training with the Yankees on a minor league contract and made the major league roster as a first baseman when Luke Voit injured a knee, earning a $1.35 million one-year deal. He hit .118 with one homer and three RBIs in 39 plate appearances this year.... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Jay Bruce had seen enough. Having made the New York Yankees' opening-day roster, he couldn't stomach his poor start to the season. So the three-time All-Star outfielder decided to retire at age 34 after Sunday's game against Tampa Bay. “Just the consistent underperformance for me,” he said. “Felt like I wasn’t able to do it at a level that was acceptable for myself.” Bruce informed Yankees manager Aaron Boone of his decision during a 20-minute meeting in the manager’s office on Friday, then made a public announcement before Sunday’s game. Bruce went to spring training with the Yankees on a minor league contract and made the major league roster as a first baseman when Luke Voit injured a knee, earning a $1.35 million one-year deal. He is hitting .118 with one homer and three RBIs in 39 plate appearances, and he remained active for Sunday’s game. He started the first eight games at first base but just two of the next seven. Bruce has a .244 average with 319 homers and 951... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Jay Bruce will be retiring after the New York Yankees' game against Tampa Bay on Sunday. Yankees manager Aaron Boone made the announcement before New York played the Rays. “He actually came to me at the start of the series,” Boone said. “He let me know his thinking.” The 34-year-old Bruce is a three-time All-Star outfielder. He went to spring training with the Yankees on a minor league contract and made the major league roster as a first baseman when Luke Voit injured a knee. Bruce is hitting .118 with one homer and three RBIs in 39 plate appearances, and he remained active for Sunday's game. He has a .244 average with 319 homers and 951 RBIs in 14 major league seasons with Cincinnati (2008-16), the New York Mets (2016-18), Cleveland (2017), Seattle (2019), Philadelphia (2019-20) and the Yankees. ___ More AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

NEW YORK (AP) — Infielder Rougned Odor was traded Tuesday from the Texas Rangers to the New York Yankees for minor league outfielders Antonio Cabello and Josh Stowers. The 27-year-old Odor did not make the Rangers’ opening day roster and was designated for assignment on April 1. He is a left-handed hitter, and the Yankees have a mostly right-handed lineup. “Hopefully we can help him get that talent out that we've seen flash over the years,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. Odor is a second baseman but also played third at spring training. He has two guaranteed seasons at $12 million each remaining as part of a $49.5 million, six-year contract. The deal includes a $13.5 million team option for 2023 with a $3 million buyout. Texas will pay the Yankees $11,060,806 to cover all but a prorated share of the $570,500 minimum this year and all but the 2022 minimum, which is still to be negotiated, a cash amount that currently projects to $11,429,500. Texas would pay New York an additional $3 million... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Infielder Rougned Odor was traded Tuesday from the Texas Rangers to the New York Yankees for minor league outfielders Antonio Cabello and Josh Stowers. The 27-year-old Odor did not make the Rangers’ opening day roster and was designated for assignment on April 1. He is a left-handed hitter, and the Yankees have a mostly right-handed lineup. “Hopefully we can help him get that talent out that we've seen flash over the years,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. Odor is a second baseman but also played third at spring training. He has two guaranteed seasons at $12 million each remaining as part of a $49.5 million, six-year contract. The deal includes a $13.5 million team option for 2023 with a $3 million buyout. Texas will pay the Yankees cash to cover most of what Odor is owed. Odor has a .237 career average with 146 homers and 458 RBIs in seven major league seasons. He hit .167 with 10 homers and 30 RBIs in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season and batted .200 with two homers... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Infielder Rougned Odor was traded Tuesday from the Texas Rangers to the New York Yankees for minor league outfielders Antonio Cabello and Josh Stowers. The 27-year-old Odor did not make the Rangers’ opening day roster and was designated for assignment on April 1. He is a left-handed hitter, and the Yankees have a mostly right-handed lineup. “Hopefully we can help him get that talent out that we've seen flash over the years,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. Odor is a second baseman but also played third at spring training. He has two guaranteed seasons at $12 million each remaining as part of a $49.5 million, six-year contract. The deal includes a $13.5 million team option for 2023 with a $3 million buyout. Texas will pay the Yankees cash to cover most of what Odor is owed. Odor has a .237 career average with 146 homers and 458 RBIs in seven major league seasons. He hit .167 with 10 homers and 30 RBIs in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season and batted .200 with two homers... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Domingo Germán was cheered by Yankees fans in his return from a domestic violence suspension but struggled against the Toronto Blue Jays, allowing three runs over three innings in New York's 3-1 loss Sunday. Germán hadn’t pitched since Sept. 18, 2019, due to an 81-game ban under Major League Baseball’s domestic violence policy after an alleged incident involving his girlfriend, with whom he has at least one child. “It was very exciting to be back on a major league mound and compete,” Germán said via translator. “I wanted to stay calm and take it all in. Definitely had some issues in the game today, but overall, exciting.” The 28-year-old was applauded by fans in right field after he bolted out of the dugout for warmups about 35 minutes before first pitch — he pointed and acknowledged them as he sprinted by. He got more cheers from the virus-restricted, sellout crowd of 10,066 after completing a 12-pitch first inning. The right-hander allowed a solo homer to Vladimir Guerrero... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Domingo Germán was cheered by Yankees fans in his return from a domestic violence suspension but struggled against the Toronto Blue Jays, allowing three runs in three innings on Sunday. Germán hadn’t pitched since Sept. 18, 2019, due to an 81-game ban under Major League Baseball’s domestic violence policy after an alleged incident involving his girlfriend, with whom he has at least one child. The 28-year-old was applauded by fans in right field after he bolted out of the dugout for warmups about 35 minutes before first pitch — he pointed and acknowledged them as he sprinted by. He got more cheers from the crowd of roughly 10,000 after completing a 12-pitch first inning. The right-hander allowed a solo homer to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and a two-run shot to Randal Grichuk in the second, repeatedly leaving the ball up in the strike zone on an afternoon with a 59-degree temperature at gametime. He needed 34 pitches to get out of the inning. He labored through 22 more pitches in... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Gerrit Cole’s dad will watch him pitch at Yankee Stadium in pinstripes for the first time, one of about 10,850 fans allowed in to watch New York’s opener against the Toronto Blue Jays. “I had trouble sleeping last night, so I probably anticipate going to be the same thing tonight,” Cole said Wednesday. “There’s just a lot of different emotions. Everybody is tired of spring training, ready for opening day. Most people’s families are in town, which is special. There’s a lot of hope. There’s a lot of excitement. There’s a lot of projections. There’s a lot of baseball out in front of you. And you’ve prepared up to this point and there’s nothing else. You just want the gates to open and you want it to start.” Cole’s first season with Yankees was played entirely without fans because of the pandemic. “It was a bit surreal at first, and then it became kind of standard operating procedure. There were more important things that we needed to focus on,” Cole said. “Every time I see... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Reliever Lucas Luetge has made the New York Yankees’ opening-day roster and is returning to the major leagues for the first time since 2015. New York selected him to the major league roster from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Wednesday and agreed to a contract paying $600,000 while in the major leagues and $180,000 while in the minors. The 34-year-old left-hander had a 1.74 ERA in nine spring training appearances. He allowed his only runs on a pair of solo homers by Toronto’s Teoscar Hernández and Kevin Smith on March 21. He gave up eight hits in 10 1/3 innings with 18 strikeouts and two walks. New York had an opening for a left-hander while Zack Britton recovers from surgery on March 15 to remove a bone chip in his pitching elbow and Justin Wilson builds arm strength after being sidelined during spring training by shoulder soreness. “There was a lot of really good competition, frankly, better competition than I feel like we’ve had in the last several years,” Yankees... [More]

NEW YORK (AP) — Reliever Lucas Luetge has made the New York Yankees’ opening-day roster and is returning to the major leagues for the first time since 2015. The 34-year-old left-hander had a 1.74 ERA in nine spring training appearances. He allowed his only runs on a pair of solo homers by Toronto’s Teoscar Hernández and Kevin Smith on March 21. He gave up eight hits in 10 1/3 innings with 18 strikeouts and two walks. New York had an opening for a left-hander while Zack Britton recovers from surgery on March 15 to remove a bone chip in his pitching elbow and Justin Wilson builds arm strength after being sidelined during spring training by shoulder soreness. “There was a lot of really good competition, frankly, better competition than I feel like we’ve had in the last several years,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Wednesday. “And there were a lot of different ways we we’re considering going for that spot. But it’s hard to deny what Lucas was able to come in really from the start of camp... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Yankees slugger Aaron Judge was scratched from the lineup for Monday’s spring training finale against Detroit due to illness but is set to play on opening day after clearing MLB’s coronavirus protocols. “He should be good to go,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said after a 5-2 loss to the Tigers. New York opens the regular season Thursday against Toronto at Yankee Stadium. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said Judge “didn’t wake up feeling all that great” and contacted the team. “We sent him through all the protocols and thankfully we’ve eliminated all the stuff other than the fact that every now and then you come up with not feeling really well,” Cashman said. “He’s not been the first one that had to deal with that at camp.” Cashman and most of the Yankees’ personnel have not received vaccinations yet but that will likely change soon as eligibility is lowered to younger age groups. “Making sure everybody gets staggered out properly, vaccinated, feeling good from it,”... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Yankees slugger Aaron Judge was scratched from the lineup for Monday’s spring training finale against Detroit due to illness but is set to play on opening day after clearing MLB’s coronavirus protocols. “He should be good to go,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said after a 5-2 loss to the Tigers. New York opens the regular season Thursday against Toronto at Yankee Stadium. Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said Judge “didn’t wake up feeling all that great” and contacted the team. “We sent him through all the protocols and thankfully we’ve eliminated all the stuff other than the fact that every now and then you come up with not feeling really well,” Cashman said. “He’s not been the first one that had to deal with that at camp.” Cashman and most of the Yankees’ personnel have not received vaccinations yet but that will likely change soon as eligibility is lowered to younger age groups. “Making sure everybody gets staggered out properly, vaccinated, feeling good from it,”... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Major league home run champion Luke Voit needs knee surgery to repair a partial meniscus tear, an injury that opened a New York Yankees roster spot for Jay Bruce on Saturday as a converted first baseman. Voit will not have any baseball activities for three weeks after the operation on his left knee, manager Aaron Boone said. Voit is expected back in May. “Let’s have the surgery, see how the early days are and then we will be able to evaluate,” Boone said. The injury to Voit, who hit 22 homers in the pandemic-shortened season, played a role in the decision to add Bruce, who attended spring training with a minor league contract. “We're going to be missing Luke but I know Jay Bruce is going to come in and do some special things for us,” Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge said. “Luke is a big part of this team, big part of this offense. He’s a really vocal guy in the clubhouse who gets us motivated. I’m excited to have Jay Bruce on his team. This is why he came to this team,... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Major league home run champion Luke Voit needs knee surgery to repair a partial meniscus tear, an injury that opened a New York Yankees roster spot for Jay Bruce on Saturday as a converted first baseman. Voit will not have any baseball activities for three weeks after the operation on his left knee, manager Aaron Boone said. Voit is expected back in May. “Let’s have the surgery, see how the early days are and then we will be able to evaluate,” Boone said. The injury to Voit, who hit 22 homers in the pandemic-shortened season, played a role in the decision to add Bruce, who attended spring training with a minor league contract. “We're going to be missing Luke but I know Jay Bruce is going to come in and do some special things for us,” Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge said. “Luke is a big part of this team, big part of this offense. He’s a really vocal guy in the clubhouse who gets us motivated. I’m excited to have Jay Bruce on his team. This is why he came to this team,... [More]

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) — Major league home run champion Luke Voit needs knee surgery to repair a partial meniscus tear, an injury that opened a New York Yankees roster spot for Jay Bruce on Saturday as a converted first baseman. Voit will not have any baseball activities for three weeks after the operation, manager Aaron Boone said. Voit is expected back in May. “Let’s have the surgery, see how the early days are and then we will be able to evaluate,” Boone said. The injury to Voit, hit 22 homers in the pandemic-shortened season, played a role in the decision to add Bruce, who attended spring training with a minor league contract. Bruce has played 1,510 major league games in the outfield and 54 at first base, including two last season. “It was part of the equation,” Boone said. “So, Jay is with us. I expect him to play a lot and a lot of first base for us. Excited to see what he can do for us.” Bruce gets a contract paying $1.35 million while in the major leagues and $150,000 should he be assigned... [More]

TAMPA, Fla (AP) — New York Yankees left-hander Zack Britton is scheduled for surgery Monday to remove a bone chip from his pitching elbow and seems likely to be out until at least May. Britton will not be able to throw for several weeks while the incision heals after the operation by Yankees head team physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Britton will then need to build arm strength. “It’s going to get taken care of and I’ll be able to pitch this year and help the team. And so that’s the most important thing,” he said Wednesday. “Could I rehab through it and possibly come back and it wouldn’t impact me? There was a chance. But we like the chances better of me coming back this season and pitching at a high level if I just got it removed now. If this was during the season, I’m not sure surgery would be the decision.” Left-hander Aroldis Chapman is the Yankees' closer, and manager Aaron Boone said he will mix and match during the sixth, seventh and eighth innings.... [More]

TAMPA, Fla (AP) — New York Yankees left-hander Zack Britton is scheduled for surgery Monday to remove a bone chip from his pitching elbow and seems likely to be out until at least May. Britton will not be able to throw for several weeks while the incision heals after the operation by Yankees head team physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Britton will then need to build arm strength. “It’s going to get taken care of and I’ll be able to pitch this year and help the team. And so that’s the most important thing,” he said Wednesday. “Could I rehab through it and possibly come back and it wouldn’t impact me? There was a chance. But we like the chances better of me coming back this season and pitching at a high level if I just got it removed now. If this was during the season, I’m not sure surgery would be the decision.” Left-hander Aroldis Chapman is the Yankees' closer, and manager Aaron Boone said he will mix and match during the sixth, seventh and eighth innings.... [More]