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Sweeny: Yankees Doing Their Best To Handle Brutal Baseball Weather

By Sweeny Murti
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Thankfully, the Yankees play the next three games in a dome, and hopefully with the roof closed in frigid Toronto.

Yes, we go through this every year with early-season games in miserable conditions and/or rainouts that have to be made up at inconvenient times later in the year.

The players don't like playing in these conditions, fans certainly don't want to sit outside in them, and we in the media don't care for them much either -- not that any of us ever complain about such things on Twitter or anywhere else, lol.

It would be a wonderful solution to have the Yankees and other northeast teams open in places like Florida, Texas or California every year. Or in Toronto, Milwaukee or Seattle, where they have a roof. Yes, they would get the games in, but it's not a perfect solution for anyone in Major League Baseball. Remember, the Yankees and Red Sox, in particular, are always among top road draws in the league. Even last year without a Derek Jeter or Mariano Rivera farewell tour, the Yankees finished second in the league to Boston.

Oakland, Anaheim or Seattle only get to see the Yankees one time a year, so they selfishly, for business reasons, don't want that one trip to be a mid-week series in April when schools aren't out and even their weather isn't ideal. These are problems you run into when baseball teams need each other as partners in business, not simply rivals on the field.

Now, it doesn't mean it can't be done once in a while -- the Yankees have had many years when they've opened out west. But to force certain teams to be home more in April means they are on the road more in September, and vice versa. To keep it fair and equitable for all teams, they have to endure the bad weather days early in the season and just make the most of it. The more important scheduling question is this: why didn't we start the season in March when it was beautiful in New York?

-- I'm already hearing from some fans who want Starlin Castro to bat higher in the order, perhaps in place of Brett Gardner.

While it's entirely possible that Castro's hot start will lead to him being moved up in the order against lefty starters -- when Aaron Hicks would play in place of either Gardner or Jacoby Ellsbury -- it is likely better to have Ellsbury and Gardner remain up top when both are in the lineup.

Gardner is consistently among the league leaders in pitches per plate appearance, a good clip better than Castro the last couple years (in 2015 Gardner saw 4.16 pitches per plate appearance, Castro 3.70. In 2014 Gardner saw 4.44 P/PA, Castro 3.73). So far this season, with an obviously very small sample size, Castro is outpacing Gardner 4.71 to 4.35 P/PA. But track record tells you Gardner will stay in that area, while Castro will come back down a bit.

A lot of the Yankees' first-inning success (they led the league in first-inning runs last year) revolves around their ability to get the starter to throw more pitches in the first inning, which has a great trickle-down effect if you're trying to get into the opposing bullpen. Gardner, batting right in front of the big boppers, has an important role in getting that starter to show all his pitches early and set up a big inning. Also there is this: there is absolutely nothing wrong with a productive bottom of the order. It's kind of what you want, actually. So, while Castro will find his days in the top half of the lineup, there is certainly great value if his bat stays hot in the bottom half.

-- CC Sabathia had a decent first effort against Detroit: six innings, three runs. It was the best start by anyone first turn through, especially considering how tough that Tigers' lineup can be on lefties.

Was Ivan Nova the Yankees best "starter" last week? He, of course, is not in the rotation, but pitched four scoreless innings out of the bullpen last Wednesday against the Astros. It was spotless on the scoreboard, so I praised Nova's effort during the postgame show for keeping the rest of the bullpen rested in a blowout game (16-6 win). The next day, a scout for an opposing team called me out. "Did you watch the game?" he laughed as he asked me. This scout was not all that impressed by Nova's tightrope act that included stranding four runners and striking out five.

-- Joe Girardi rested a few bats for the day game in Detroit last week and the Yankees were shut down by Jordan Zimmerman. That won't keep Girardi from doing it again, for it is a preemptive effort to keep his players healthy.

When you hear that a player needs a day or needs the rest, you shouldn't take it to mean that he is so physically exhausted he needs to lay in bed with an IV tube. Players are more prone to muscle pulls when they aren't properly rested, and that can come after playing several days in a row, and/or less recovery time with day games after night games or long flights and late arrivals. Nobody is saying a player is dying from exhaustion. It's just a way to try to head off injuries with an aging roster. The players Girardi sat last week were his two oldest -- Alex Rodriguez (40) and Carlos Beltran (38), plus catcher Brian McCann. You can keep complaining if you want, but it's not going to keep Girardi from doing what he thinks is the best way to keep his players healthy for the long haul.

-- Andrew Miller has shown no ill effects from the chipped bone in his right hand. From the day he got hurt he seemed to have almost no concern about being able to pitch. Tough? You have no idea. Check out Miller in his other role as the Yankees' Clubhouse bouncer. I might add that I show quite a bit of range in my non-speaking role. Thanks to the talented guys at Yankees On Demand.

-- A new episode of my "30 With Murti" podcast premiers this Friday with Emmy Award-winning actor Richard Schiff (Toby Ziegler on The West Wing). You can also check out the previous episodes with Joe Girardi and Gene "Stick" Michael.

Follow Sweeny on Twitter at @YankeesWFAN

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