On Thursday, Aaron Hicks started as the designated hitter for the Yankees, but he failed to record a hit for the first time this spring, despite the ban on extreme shifts.
However, Hicks believes that the shift will not be an obstacle for him this season as he attempts to have a bounce-back campaign.
Last year, Hicks was shifted more than any other Yankee, during which he hit .216 with a .642 OPS overall.
With the ban on extreme shifts, Hicks sees more opportunities to hit towards the middle-right side of the field, where he feels that opponents rarely position their infielders.
Hicks took advantage of the new rule in his first game, hitting a single through the right side and another single back up the middle in the following game.
Hicks believes there were many pitches he couldn’t swing at in the past because the result would be right at the fielder.
With infielders now limited to staying on the dirt, Hicks sees more chances to hit the ball to the middle-right side of the field.
Hicks will have to use this to his advantage as he attempts to win the left field job, with several other candidates, including Oswaldo Cabrera, Willie Calhoun, and Rafael Ortega, in the mix.
The Yankees’ upper-level catching depth has taken a hit due to injuries. With Jose Trevino and Kyle Higashioka being the only available catchers, the team will have to rely on their minor league catchers, including Rodolfo Duran, Carlos Narvaez, and Anthony Seigler, none of whom have played above Double-A.
Higashioka will leave for the WBC soon, so the Yankees will continue pulling catchers from their minor league camp.
Gleyber Torres was initially scheduled to play in Thursday’s game but was scratched from the lineup after needing to have a tooth pulled the day before.
Instead, he was set to work out back at the Yankees’ complex.
»Aaron Hicks fails to record a hit for the first time this spring«
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