Alex Rodriguez excited about calling Yankees-Red Sox on Sunday
Yankees Alex Rodriguez during batting practice during Game 3 of the World Series against the Kansas City Royals at Citi Field on Oct. 30, 2015. Credit: Jim McIsaac
Alex Rodriguez played at the new Yankee Stadium for seven seasons, but he still doesn’t know where the press box is. This weekend, he’s going to learn.
(Fine, fine. We’ll give him a hint: 200 level, where all the laptops are.)
“It’s going to be a thrill,” Rodriguez said about calling the series finale for ESPN on Sunday night, the first time he’s called a game at the Stadium. “I almost feel like I know too much about both teams because I’ve been in it so long and I know so many of the characters. I am grateful and I’m so happy to share it with the big audience . . . It’s a little odd [being on the media side] for sure. I come back and see all the same media people and all the same fans. It’s kind of a little weird.”
A-Rod is a special adviser to Brian Cashman and chatted with him before Saturday night’s game. He’s close with many of the younger Yankees — Gleyber Torres, Miguel Andujar and Gary Sanchez — and has worked with them extensively.
Rodriguez said Sanchez, who is on the disabled list with a groin injury, is one of the great pure hitters in the game, though he added that he has some work to do.
“I’d put him with a Manny Ramirez or a David Ortiz,” he said. “The other elements — the things he has to control — is being in shape, being healthy, being engaged, all those things is what the staff has to do to get him there. As far as raw ability? Game on the line? Gary Sanchez.”
Drury plays first
Aaron Boone started Brandon Drury at first base for only the second time in Drury’s career on Saturday. Drury, who was sequestered in Triple-A after struggling with migraines and blurred vision, worked at first base for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to give him more versatility in a lineup that includes Andujar at third base and Torres at second base, positions that Drury has played frequently in the majors.
“It’s going to be kind of a work in progress for him over there,” Boone said. “Obviously, we feel like athletically, he’s more than capable of handling it.”
Sabathia elite
CC Sabathia’s win over the Red Sox on Friday night was his 242nd career victory, placing him 13th among lefthanders and 54th among all pitchers.
Sabathia’s win also came after a loss. Since last season, he is 12-0 with a 2.47 ERA in 18 starts after a regular-season loss.
Laura Albanese is a reporter, feature writer and columnist covering local professional sports teams; she began at Newsday in 2007 as an intern.
