The Yankees kicked off spring training with Mike King on the mound, who got quick outs to start the day. Aaron Judge nearly made a shoestring catch but dropped it, which was fine for day one. A walk and a hit batter set up a Rowdy Tellez opposite-field homer just inside the foul pole, giving the Blue Jays an early lead. Luke Voit had a funny moment pretending a foul ball was fair, asking the umps to test out the replay system. Gleyber Torres made a solid play at short, a good sign given questions about his defense.
On the fun side, a kid got a souvenir ball after some crowd teamwork, and Andújar smartly let a tricky grounder go foul. DJ LeMahieu picked up the Yankees’ first hit, and Judge smashed one to the wall, prompting some speculation about the state of the baseballs. Gleyber followed with another hit, and Voit put a playable ball into the outfield that the defense couldn’t handle. Adam Warren, making a return, froze a hitter with a changeup for a backward K. Rob Brantly hit a homer, followed by a fan hustling to beat another guy to the ball, showing off and then giving it to a nearby girl. Mike Tauchman also went deep, trying to make a case for himself in a crowded outfield. Overall, it was a light, fun first day with decent energy and a few good plays. Spring has started, and baseball is back.