J.A. Happ turns in another strong spring training start for Yankees
The Yankees' J.A. Happ delivers a pitch during the first inning of a spring training game against the Rays on Thursday in Tampa, Fla. Credit: AP/Frank Franklin II
TAMPA, Fla. — J.A. Happ has been doing this long enough to know he shouldn’t get carried away about two good spring training outings.
“Nothing,” the 37-year-old lefthander said of what he can take out of his second straight good performance, three strong innings Thursday in a 7-1 victory over the Rays at Steinbrenner Field.
But that doesn’t mean they’re irrelevant. Happ, coming off the worst season of his 13-year major-league career, has allowed one run and two hits in five innings. He has struck out five, including two Thursday, and walked none.
“I really wanted to throw strikes from the get-go,” said Happ, who threw 30 strikes out of 40 pitches. “A big thing for me is keeping count leverage . . . I’m better when I do that. That’s a main focus of mine is attacking.”
Latest on Judge
On Tuesday, Aaron Boone had indicated that Aaron Judge, battling right shoulder discomfort for nearly a month, could take batting practice outside by week’s end. He seemed to hedge on that Thursday, though.
“I know he hit in the cage today [but] I don’t know if he’ll be on the field yet. I don’t know his exact schedule through the weekend,” Boone said. “But he’s doing well.”
Judge played catch at 120 feet for a second straight day.
Severino has surgery
The Yankees announced that righthander Luis Severino’s Tommy John surgery “went as planned” Thursday in New York. The surgery was performed by Dr. David Altchek at the Hospital for Special Surgery. A bone chip in his right elbow also was removed during the procedure.
Extra bases
Tyler Wade slammed a long two-run homer to right in the first off righthander Aaron Slegers on a 2-and-0 fastball and Clint Frazier made it back-to-back blasts, hammering a 3-and-0 fastball to left for a 3-1 lead . . . Utilityman Rosell Herrera, a non-roster invitee who appeared in 63 games with the Marlins last season, started at third base and made a terrific stop and throw on a ground smash in the third. He also went 1-for-3 to improve to 3-for-9, including a triple, in four games.
Erik Boland started in Newsday's sports department in 2002. He covered high school and college sports, then shifted to the Jets beat. He has covered the Yankees since 2009.
More Yankees headlines
