SSTN Mailbag: Schlittler, Jones, And Grichuk!

It's Spring Training and almost none of the numbers matter in a significant way. That said, I've had a lot of fun watching the Yankees outperform their opponents throughout the earliest stretch of Spring Training games. There's actually been a lot of baseball that's worth watching! There haven't been many times I've been able to say that in February, but it's true.

The Yankees' regulars have seen a fair amount of playing time as many of them prepare to play in the WBC, and frankly, I'll never complain about getting to see more of Aaron Judge. Additionally, we've gotten early looks at many of the Yankees' consequential prospects and young players looking to establish themselves. I have a post coming about some of my observations, but I think it's been a really interesting Spring here in the early going.

I think Spring will still be interesting once the WBC gets underway, because it is going to mean a lot more big league time for prospects who are left hanging around during the WBC. Of course, I'll also follow the WBC, but if I'm being completely honest, I'm often left underwhelmed by the pre-season tournament. To be very fair, it is incredibly difficult to pin down a proper time of year for a tournament of this magnitude, given the differences in baseball schedules throughout the world. However, we've very often seen that players in multiple countries are far from mid-season form, which detracts from the competition. I'm not sure what the right answer is, but I wish the WBC were played at a different time.

As always, thanks for the great questions and keep them coming to SSTNReadermail@gmail.com. In this week's SSTN Mailbag, we'll talk about Cam Schlittler's injury, early returns on Spencer Jones, and the signing of Randall Grichuk! Let's get at it:

Brian asks: On a scale of 1-10, how worried are you about Cam Schlittler's "mid-back" injury that sure sounds like a lat injury? I'm having flashbacks to Luis Severino.

Lats are scary injuries for pitchers, so I don't blame anyone for being concerned about Schlittler. I also remember the manner in which Luis Severino's various injuries and recoveries were botched by the Yankees and their medical/training staffs, and I think Yankee fans have earned the right to be skeptical whenever they learn of a lingering injury.

For Schlittler specifically, two things give me pause. The first is that it's a lat, and both lats are critical when throwing a baseball hard. The second is that Schlittler admitted that he first felt pain in the area last season over the final two-plus months and hid it from the team. For the moment, let's focus on the second point.

I understand why Schlittler pitched through pain at the end of last season. He was a young guy looking to establish himself, and he was clearly able to pitch through the pain to get outstanding results. However, I do have a problem with the fact that he kept the reality of the pain to himself this offseason. Schlittler has admitted in interviews that this was a mistake. Functionally, the biggest concern is that the pain returned when he started to ramp up for Spring Training. That means that this is an injury that needed real rehab to manage, which means it's more than a small deal. If the Yankee training staff and Schlittler aren't careful, this is an injury that could linger, or worse, cause a more major injury.

My concern is real. Since I started writing my responses to the Mailbag, we've learned that Schlittler came through a live batting practice session to hitters successfully. That drops my concern by a little bit. Before that bit of news, I was a 6/10 on concern; with news that he came through that batting practice session okay, I'm dropping my level of concern to 5/10.

Regardless of my level of concern, Schlittler and the Yankees need to be very, very careful about his buildup for the season. If I were the Yankees, I would take advantage of off-days in the early season schedule to delay Schlittler's first regular season start by a couple of weeks to give him a long runway to ramp up. The last thing anyone needs is another Severino debacle.

Marc G. asks: I've read about Spencer Jones here and elsewhere, but I had never really watched him in a game until this spring. Wow is this guy a presence at the plate. He's hit some absolute monster home runs this spring. I know you have written about his likely outcomes before, but what do you see this spring and does it change your opinion of how he'll perform in the major leagues?

Every tool that excites people about Jones have been on full display this Spring. When Jones connects, the contact often leads to outstanding results. Many have pointed to the 95 MPH fastball up in the zone that Jones liquified in his first Spring game this year as evidence that his new swing mechanics have taken and will lead to a leap in performance.

I would caution everyone not to read too much into his Spring homers. Yes, Jones has 80-grade raw power that he's capable of getting to in games. However, we have also seen all of the swing-and-miss that has plagued him throughout his young career. Despite the two homers, I have watched Jones swing through multiple very hittable pitches against pitchers who are not equivalent to average big league pitchers. That will always be part of Jones' game, and the open question is whether he will be able to connect with enough frequency to live with the whiffs. The jury is still out on that point.

Nothing I've seen this Spring changes that evaluation. He remains an enticing talent, with good speed, a likelihood of playing strong defense, and rare raw power. We'll see if he can get to the 35-grade hit tool he'll need to be a successful big leaguer.

Michael B. asks: The Yankees just signed Randall Grichuk to a minor league deal. Thoughts?

I don't love it, but I get it. Grichuk is a strong defender, and while he struggled at the plate last season against all pitchers, he has traditionally hit left-handed pitching quite well. The Yankees telegraphed their desire for more right-handed hitting options who could legitimately handle the 4th outfielder job this year, and Grichuk is a real candidate to fill that role.

I also don't think that bringing Grichuk in is necessarily a bad thing for Jasson Dominguez either. Not that I think that Dominguez needs anyone to light a fire under him, but having a veteran directly compete for outfield reps might bring something more out in Dominguez. Unfortunately, I think Grichuk's signing also hedges against the likelihood that Dominguez needs more reps as a right-handed hitter down in AAA.

Again, I'm not the biggest Grichuk fan on the planet, but I don't think a minor league deal for someone like this is a bad plan.