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CLEARWATER, Fla. — Turns out, there may be a reason for Joely Rodriguez’s drop in velocity on Thursday. Aaron Boone said Friday the lefty felt “a little pinch that was affecting him.”
Rodriguez got treatment on his neck Friday.
Boone said he was unsure if the neck began bothering Rodriguez after he started warming up
“I don’t think it’s anything,’’ Boone said.
Aroldis Chapman had better success in his first outing of the spring, hitting 97 mph in a scoreless inning.
Both Chapman and Boone are confident the plan of occasionally using him in the eighth inning will pay dividends, after Chapman went through stretches last year without pitching when no save opportunities presented themselves.
“We think it’s something that’s going to serve him well and serve the staff well,’’ Boone said. “I hope it provides a little more consistency with when he pitches and leads to more consistency and rhythm with his delivery.”
Asked about the slightly different role, Chapman said through an interpreter, “I’m here to pitch. Whatever works.”
Boone noted that Chapman remains the closer.
Manny Banuelos’ comeback attempt got another boost, as he threw two scoreless innings, striking out three and walking none.
“He’s been good all camp,’’ Boone said of the 31-year-old, who was once one of the Yankees’ top pitching prospects before being sidetracked by injuries.
“He commands the ball,’’ the manager said. “I like his presence out there. He has pitchability and can change speeds. It feels like he knows what he’s doing out there.”
The lefty spent the last two seasons pitching in Taiwan and most recently pitched in the majors with the White Sox in 2019. His fastball now sits around 91-93 mph, so he’ll have to be creative to get hitters out.
After Kyle Higashioka hit a pair of homers, he noted his power was there a year ago, but consistency was not.
“When I hit a rough patch, I need to learn how to make adjustments quickly and snap out of it,’’ Higashioka said.
A day after starting at shortstop, Marwin Gonzalez played left field and Boone said he’s likely to be off Saturday and then play second base on Sunday.
That versatility may help Gonzalez win a job.
“It doesn’t hurt,’’ Boone said. “He can play all over [and] switch-hit. Those all are positive. We want to move him around the diamond.”
DJ LeMahieu’s strong spring continued, with two more hits, including a double. LeMahieu started at third base and has shown no effects from the sports hernia he had surgery repaired in the offseason.
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