Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic <\/p>\n
As Opening Day draws near, the YES Network trio of Paul O\u2019Neill, David Cone and Michael Kay fielded some Yankees questions from The Post\u2019s Steve Serby.<\/p>\n
Q: How will Juan Soto leaving affect Aaron Judge?<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: It affects everybody. What inning wasn\u2019t fun to watch when Soto and Judge hit back-to-back? I think the Yankees have plugged so many holes by not having Soto\u2019s salary, that overall, they might be a better team. Offensively, probably not. No doubt in my mind he\u2019s going to have a great year for the Mets. I think team-wise, defensive-wise, everything put together, you\u2019re going to be fine.<\/p>\n
Cone: It really was that magical. It was as if we were looking at Ruth and Gehrig. The Yankees rode them all the way to the World Series. That World Series in my mind was closer than you think. A lot of it was because of Soto, so with him gone, it\u2019s a huge loss. The only thing they could do is pivot and try to make up for it in a lot of different categories. I don\u2019t think the Yankees are done yet, but I think the pieces they got were very good choices.<\/p>\n
Kay: I think maybe a little fewer RBIs, but Judge had a 62-home run season without Soto. I think they both benefitted from each other last year. I think he\u2019s going to have another big year. If anything, he might walk more, but a lot of that is predicated on the guys hitting behind him as well.<\/p>\n
Q: What should Yankees fans expect from Judge?<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: He makes it look so easy. Everybody talks about his size and his power, but what he adds to defense, and his instincts on the bases, he just does everything right. There\u2019s one thing in his mind, and that\u2019s to accumulate some World Series wins to make his career complete.<\/p>\n
Q: Who protects him this year?<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: Aaron Judge has gotten very good at knowing when he\u2019s being pitched around, and being able to take walks and not frustrated to the point where he leaves the strike zone. You\u2019re going to have to have a lineup that people know their roles. If you\u2019re Aaron Judge, your role is to hit 50 home runs and drive in 120. I don\u2019t think that there\u2019s one guy that you can plug in behind Aaron Judge that\u2019s just going to just make a difference day in and day out. You\u2019re going to have to have a team that scores runs day in and day out so you get the ball to the bullpen.<\/p>\n
Q: Cody Bellinger and the temptation of the right field porch?<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: If you look at his swing, he can pull the ball, and obviously as a lefty that\u2019s the first thing that comes to your mind. I just think he\u2019s going to fill a lot of voids as far as he\u2019s athletic, he can run, he can play a lot of positions for you. You got an opportunity to play for the Yankees, you grew up playing in the playroom when your father (Clay) was on the team, I think that\u2019s going to be a big challenge for him to just try to control that and not try to do too much.<\/p>\n
Kay: I think when he\u2019s healthy he\u2019s an impact player. You can just see the ball flies off his bat. They improved themselves defensively. His swing plays in that ballpark for sure.<\/p>\n
Cone: Right guy at the right time, doing the right thing, wearing the right uniform. Wearing his father\u2019s number. His swing is built for Yankee Stadium. If he was ever going to approach his MVP-type numbers that he had earlier in his career with the Dodgers, it\u2019s going to be as a Yankee in Yankee Stadium.<\/p>\n
Q: With that short right field porch, do you think he\u2019s a 30-home run candidate?<\/p>\n
Cone: Absolutely. He has the ability to get the ball in the air on the pull side a lot, meaning he can go down and get off-speed pitches that are away and hook them, and get them in the air, get them out of the ballpark.<\/p>\n
Q: Paul Goldschmidt at age 37?<\/p>\n
Kay: Well the Yankees have had almost no production out of first base for a long time now. After Anthony Rizzo suffered that concussion when he ran into (the Padres\u2019 Fernando) Tatis Jr. at first, he was not the same player, did not have the same impact. And frankly, although he was a former Platinum Glove winner, he was not great defensively the last two years. If Goldschmidt has the season that he had last year, and I think he\u2019s gonna have a better season, I think it\u2019ll be a giant plus for the Yankees.<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: There was a big hole at first base and a big void. This is one of the things you take on I think as an organization and just hope it\u2019s the right time and the right fit.<\/p>\n
Cone: That\u2019s another guy that I think Yankee Stadium will help. His power\u2019s the opposite field, that inside-out style of hitting to get the ball the other way like Judge. He\u2019s still a fantastic athlete in fantastic shape, a great defender, a really smart base runner, a really great influence in the clubhouse. Is he going to be his MVP self? He doesn\u2019t really have to be. If he\u2019s above league average in all of those categories, that\u2019s going to be a major improvement for the Yankees.<\/p>\n
Q: Max Fried as an ace in New York with Gerrit Cole lost for the season?<\/p>\n
Cone: I think he\u2019ll be fine. He\u2019s been a big-time pitcher since the first time he walked on a mound when he was in Little League. He\u2019s ready for this. And he chose this.<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: He\u2019s always been a winner. He\u2019s a lefty, which can really help pitching in Yankee Stadium against other powerful lefty hitters.<\/p>\n
Kay: He\u2019s got the stuff, he\u2019s been an ace in Atlanta, he pitched big games and won a World Series for them. \u2026 New York, you\u2019ll have to see. It seemed like he embraced it, he wanted to come here.<\/p>\n
Q: What impresses you most about him?<\/p>\n
Cone: I\u2019m impressed with all of his weapons. He\u2019s got a number of different ways to get hitters out. It\u2019s not just by the strikeout or not just by power. Although he has power. But he can certainly stay off of the barrel, he can get a lot of ground balls, he can cut it, he can sink it \u2014 he\u2019s really a movement specialist. A real craftsman. He\u2019s a fun guy to watch pitch.<\/p>\n
Kay: He\u2019s got so many different pitches that he commands to both sides of the plate, he\u2019s smart, his stuff is electric. I don\u2019t think he gets afraid on the mound. The key to him is health. He would have been a great No. 2 for the Yankees, now he\u2019s going to have to be a really good No. 1.<\/p>\n
Q: Devin Williams and his Airbender?<\/p>\n
Cone: He\u2019s a unicorn, there\u2019s no doubt about that. The thing that makes his Airbender, that changeup, so successful and more like a screwball really is that it has such incredibly tight spin on it.<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: Every year there\u2019s new pitches and new words. (Luke) Weaver was really, really good at the closer\u2019s role, so now you\u2019ve got a bridge to one of the best closers in baseball.<\/p>\n
Kay: This is one of the top two closers in all of baseball, he or (Cleveland\u2019s) Emmanuel Clase. When you got a guy that can nail down the ninth inning, and then you can almost have Luke Weaver actually play the role of the 1996 Mariano Rivera, when he can pitch the seventh and eighth innings \u2026 and then the X factor is going to be Jonathan Lo\u00e1isiga. He\u2019s as good as any relief pitcher in the game if he\u2019s healthy which he hasn\u2019t been for a couple of years. I think the Yankee bullpen stacks up with any bullpen in baseball.<\/p>\n
Q: Middle relief?<\/p>\n
Cone: I think having Devin Williams just makes everybody else that much better. Everybody moves down a notch. I certainly feel like they have a good mix. I\u2019m still a believer in different styles that mix well together. How the pieces fit together matter to me. That\u2019s a real art to putting together a pitching staff.<\/p>\n
Q: The Anthony Volpe-Jazz Chisholm double-play combination?<\/p>\n
Cone: That\u2019s I think going to be really fun for Yankee fans to watch, it\u2019s just the speed and the athleticism around the bag.<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: Chisholm really surprised me positively last year when he came over. He shows he has a lot of power, he\u2019s got great speed, tremendous arm. And now I think he\u2019s going to be even more comfortable going back to second base where he\u2019s used to playing. Volpe still has a ways to go to hit his ceiling where he\u2019s going to be one of the game\u2019s better shortstops.<\/p>\n
Kay: Brian Cashman told us on the \u201cHot Stove\u201d show on YES that he acquired Chisholm to play second base, but then Gleyber Torres refused to play third. He and Volpe have been inseparable during spring training, and Volpe is a Gold Glove-winning shortstop.<\/p>\n
Q: Any concern about Oswaldo Cabrera at third base?<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: Defensively no. I think that could be kind of a platoon thing possibly. If he gets an opportunity to play every day and he runs with it, then it makes it very easy for Aaron Boone. Third base is a spot where you need production offensively.<\/p>\n
Cone: Yes, it is. Oswaldo Cabrera deserves a shot to show what he can do, he\u2019s earned that right even though he\u2019s probably better suited as a utility guy playing all over the field.<\/p>\n
Q: DH without Giancarlo Stanton?<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: I think (Ben) Rice is going to get an opportunity. I don\u2019t think you\u2019re going to have a guy like Stanton, or like when we had Chili Davis, who was just a DH. I think you\u2019re going to kind of see a revolving scene around the DH as far as giving people rest and plugging in guys that are good matchups on that given night.<\/p>\n
Cone: I like Ben Rice. Once again, I think the theme with the Yankees is going to continue to be similar to what it was in the early-\u201990s and where you\u2019re building a Core Four, it still has to come from within, you need the young guys to continue to step up. Ben Rice needs to be that guy this year, Will Warren needs to be that guy this year, among others.<\/p>\n
Kay: They\u2019re a little light on right-handed hitting even if Stanton was healthy. Right now the DH becomes a revolving door. I think it\u2019s less of an issue if Ben Rice is an impact player.<\/p>\n
Q: What impressed you about Rice?<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: His attitude, for one thing. He\u2019s a happy kid, you could tell he was kind of in awe just to be there. \u2026 He can even put catcher\u2019s gear on if he has to. If he swings the bat, he\u2019s going to get a lot of bats, especially against righties in the DH spot.<\/p>\n
Cone: He was never overmatched. Even when he was slumping at the end, he never really looked like he was not in control of the situation or that the game was above him. He always got good at bats. Hit the ball really hard when he did hit it hard. I just love the way he swings the bat, I love his power potential.<\/p>\n
Kay: His plate discipline, taking pitches. I think the league caught up with him a little bit, so that affected him toward the end, but I think he\u2019s made some adjustments, and also he\u2019s put on some muscle.<\/p>\n
Q: Austin Wells?<\/p>\n
Kay: The one knock against him coming up was that he was not a good defender. He\u2019s become of the top framing catchers in the game. He\u2019s still doesn\u2019t have the greatest arm, but I think it\u2019s serviceable enough that he can throw out 25 to 30 percent of base stealers, which would be great. I think he\u2019s going to be a force offensively. I think the Yankees have a real diamond in the rough there.<\/p>\n
Cone: So much better defensively than he was ever given credit for coming up through. He\u2019s a leader back there, he frames exceptionally well, all the metrics say so. He throws certainly average or better. He\u2019s both ends, defense and offense.<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: He puts together good at bats. I love the way he catches. He\u2019s on the mark as being one of the better defensive catchers in the American League. I don\u2019t think that he\u2019s hit his ceiling yet either. I think it\u2019s a really opportune time for him to take off and be an everyday catcher.<\/p>\n
Q: Jasson Dom\u00ednguez?<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: You can see his bat speed and his overall speed, he\u2019s capable of doing some things. Everything you hear about him, read about him, he\u2019s gonna be an offensive presence, and you just hope that, especially young guys, get off to good starts so they don\u2019t start pressing and start trying to force things.<\/p>\n
Kay: I think he can be a star at the plate, especially against right-handed pitching. I think he still has a ways to go batting from the right side. Defense is going to be an issue, but I\u2019ve always said offense is a great deodorant for defense.<\/p>\n
Cone: They need him to be their guy, they need him to be that switch-hitter with power and speed. He\u2019s got to learn how to play left field, too, as well. I can actually see him getting some DH time here and there as well. His bat should play in the big leagues, his speed should play in the big leagues. This is the year they need to find out.<\/p>\n
Q: Can this team manufacture runs with its speed?<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: I think that the Yankees will be better at it this year.<\/p>\n
Cone: You\u2019ll have Jazz Chisholm for a full year. He\u2019s a legitimate 30-30 guy, and Volpe just needs to get on base more. Once he gets on base more, he\u2019s an excellent base runner. He has a high aptitude. He\u2019s swinging the bat with more authority, hitting the ball harder. Those guys are going to be a force for them defensively and offensively running the bases.<\/p>\n
Kay: If they lead off Wells, they\u2019re not going to have speed at the top of the lineup, but they will have speed from 3 on. A lot of it\u2019s going to rest on how much Volpe can get on, because I think he\u2019s a stolen base waiting to happen.<\/p>\n
Q: Do you like Wells in the leadoff spot?<\/p>\n
Kay: I do, because your No. 2 hitter is Judge. I don\u2019t want to get anybody thrown out.<\/p>\n
Q: The state of the rotation with Cole gone and Luis Gil shelved?<\/p>\n
Cone: The Yankees need to find out how many arms that they can develop. Some of the young guys really have to step forward.<\/p>\n
Kay: To be frank, it worries me. The old saying Next Man Up, well now you\u2019re going at least two men Next Man Up into the rotation.<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: Teams win without their best players sometimes. That\u2019s what\u2019s going to have to happen. You just move on. You figure out a way, whether it\u2019s to be a better offensive team day in and day out, or if you look at the way they\u2019ve played baseball since I\u2019ve been doing games the past 10 years, get to the middle of the game and then have a really, really good bullpen.<\/p>\n
Q: Team defense?<\/p>\n
Cone: We need to see Dom\u00ednguez in left develop and see if he can handle the position or not. Moving Aaron Judge back to right field puts him in his Gold Glove spot in my mind. Up the middle the Yankees are strong, Goldschmidt\u2019s a Gold Glove at first base, and then Cabrera\u2019s very good at third base as well. I expect the defense overall to be better.<\/p>\n
Q: How do you see the division?<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: I think the American League East will be extremely competitive and I think the Yankees and the Red Sox will have that rivalry thing going again because both teams are strong.<\/p>\n
Cone: The division is as tight as ever. It\u2019s back to being the Beasts of the East for me the year. \u2026 Boston\u2019s got more talent than anybody in terms of prospects right on the verge. That\u2019s why I say the Yankees\u2019 young guys really need to match what\u2019s going on. \u2026 The whole division\u2019s kind of up for grabs in my mind.<\/p>\n
Kay: I still think they\u2019re good enough to win the East. The teams that scare me would be the Orioles and the Red Sox. I\u2019m not going to put lipstick on a pig and say losing Cole is not impactful, of course it is. But you just got to get it done and find a way. \u2026 Nobody in this league scares me. I would still say they can make it to the World Series.<\/p>\n
Q: Having come so close to winning the World Series, how will that affect this team\u2019s hunger?<\/p>\n
O\u2019Neill: It makes it a long offseason, and you just realize when you go into Opening Day, that it\u2019s not a given you\u2019re going to get back there again. Do they have the pieces? I think so. \u2026 The Yankees, by getting into the playoffs, and getting to the World Series, it\u2019s only going to help them in the future when they get back to those spots. Every once in a while you just have that perfect year, that perfect chemistry, and who\u2019s not to say that that\u2019s going to be this type of year for the Yankees?<\/p>\n
Kay: They certainly have a lot of bulletin board fodder. The stuff that the Dodgers said, I don\u2019t know why they said it \u2026 if that doesn\u2019t provide motivation that, \u201cWe knew they\u2019d make mistakes, we knew they\u2019d throw the ball away, they didn\u2019t run the bases well\u201d \u2014 it\u2019s right there.<\/p>\n
Cone: The core guys, it\u2019ll stay with them, it\u2019ll motivate you. When you\u2019re on the losing end of something, especially the way it happened, you have no other alternative but to use it as motivation. They\u2019ve really had kind of the dirt kicked in their face because of the last game and the errors and the miscues and the baserunning and everything kind of mounting up on them, so they\u2019ve really kind of had it rubbed in their face a little bit. To me, that\u2019s even extra motivation for them, to show, \u2018Hey, you know what? We\u2019re going to get back there again this year. Even though we lost Soto, we\u2019ve got enough here to go through the American League and get back to the World Series.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Summarize this content to 2000 words in 6 paragraphs in Arabic As Opening Day draws near, the YES Network trio of Paul O\u2019Neill, David Cone and Michael Kay fielded some Yankees questions from The Post\u2019s Steve Serby. Q: How will Juan Soto leaving affect Aaron Judge? O\u2019Neill: It affects everybody. What inning wasn\u2019t fun to<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":249806,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[58],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-249805","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-sports"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249805","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=249805"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249805\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":249807,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/249805\/revisions\/249807"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/249806"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=249805"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=249805"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/globetimeline.com\/ar\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=249805"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}