Yankees scouting report for the 2021 MLB season

ROTATION: Stop me if you’ve heard this before: If the Yankees' rotation stays healthy — namely Corey Kluber and Jameson Taillon, who arrived in camp with significant health questions stemming from the previous two seasons — it should be among the best in baseball. It’s anchored by the team’s durable ace, Gerrit Cole, and Kluber and Taillon have excellent upsides. Add Jordan Montgomery, who showed signs in last year’s shortened season that he had put his June 2018 Tommy John surgery behind him, and either Deivi Garcia or Domingo German, each of whom pitched well in spring training, and the unit overall looks as solid as any — if it stays healthy.

GRADE: A-

BULLPEN: Even with the loss of Zack Britton until likely the second half of the season (he underwent surgery in mid-March to remove a bone chip from his left elbow), the unit on paper looks among the strongest — if not the strongest — in the game. Aroldis Chapman still throws 100 mph, has spent the last several seasons refining his slider into a plus pitch and has added a splitter/changeup. Chad Green can match strikeouts with anyone, sidearmer Darren O’Day’s slow, slower and slowest fastball-slider combination should continue to flummox hitters, and lefthander Justin Wilson gives Aaron Boone another solid late-inning option.

GRADE: A

MIDDLE INFIELDERS: If Gleyber Torres regains his 2018 and ’19 form at the plate and puts his 2020 defensive woes at shortstop behind him, and if DJ LeMahieu continues to be DJ LeMahieu at the plate and in the field (and there’s been no indication he won’t be), the Yankees easily can make the argument that they have the game's top middle infield combination. LeMahieu’s performance in spring training suggested that he has picked up where he left off in 2020, when he led MLB with a .364 average. Torres, who is in far better condition than he was last season, came out of the gate strong on offense and defense.

GRADE: A- 

CORNER INFIELDERS: What appeared a solid pair for the Yankees going into the season took a hit late in the spring when Luke Voit, MLB's home run champion in last year's COVID-19-shortened 60-game season with 22, underwent surgery to repair a meniscus tear in his left knee. That opened a roster spot for Jay Bruce, who will fill in for Voit until he's ready to return (the Yankees hope it won't be more than a month or so). Bruce is average at best in the field but so, too, is Voit. Gio Urshela is a terrific glove but his erratic bat bears watching.

GRADE: B-

OUTFIELD: Fan favorite Clint Frazier finally will get his chance as the everyday leftfielder, given that status before the start of camp by general manager Brian Cashman and manager Aaron Boone. Frazier, whose hitting has never been in question, appears to have put his defensive issues of 2019 permanently behind him. With Aaron Hicks in center and Aaron Judge in right, it should be a dynamic group, though the latter two have had their share of injuries the last few years.

GRADE: B+

CATCHING: Backup Kyle Higashioka, who dealt with what the Yankees called a "sore side" with less than three weeks to go in camp, won over Cole last season and became the ace’s personal catcher down the stretch and into the playoffs. But at the start of spring training, the Yankees made it clear that that pairing isn't guaranteed this season, and Gary Sanchez caught Cole consistently in the exhibition games. Sanchez’s defense, though with a hiccup here and there, was mostly decent to good in spring training, and his early power show had almost no one talking about that side of the ball, good or bad.

GRADE: B

DH/BENCH: All indications were that Giancarlo Stanton, limited to a total of 41 games the last two seasons because of a slew of injuries, came through spring training healthy and witih his potent bat intact. Brett Gardner, back for a 14th season, will enter this year as an outfield reserve, but he's ready to take over in leftfield if Frazier endures any prolonged struggles. The Yankees like the lefthanded hitting and versatility provided by Jay Bruce, another piece of what seems a deep bench.

GRADE: B+