Just the start the Yankees wanted in their spring opener.

After three-and-a-half months, we finally have baseball games. The Yankees got their exhibition slate off to a winning start, Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt both getting hits in their first Yankee at-bats to set the tone for an eventual 4-0 victory.

After all of the unrest generated by the Yankees’ public desire to trade Marcus Stroman this winter, they handed him the ball for the first inning of the spring opener. Despite his insistence earlier today that he does not intend to cut payroll this season, Hal Steinbrenner reportedly will not green-light the much-needed addition of another infielder until the Yankees can shed as much of Stroman’s $18 million salary for 2025 and vesting option.

With his team broadcasting their desire for a divorce, Stroman was a no-show for the first two days of pitchers and catchers. When he did arrive to camp, he reiterated his belief in himself as a starter and not a reliever. He didn’t seem overly affected by the off-field distraction, striking out the first batter he faced and navigating around a pair of two-out singles to work a scoreless first inning.

We got our first look at the reworked top of the Yankees order, minus a certain Aaron Judge as he paces himself to open camp and won’t appear in games until early March. The Yankees feel that Jasson Domínguez can be a dynamic leadoff hitter on account of his speed and disciplined eye, and he drew a leadoff walk to give the Yankees their first baserunner of the spring. Newcomers Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt followed him in the order, Bellinger dribbling a single through the infield to put runners on the corners and Goldschmidt driving both home with a two-strike double off the wall in left to give the Yankees an early lead, 2-0.

Cody Bellinger and Paul Goldschmidt get the @Yankees offense going early in their first #SpringTraining game!

📺 MLB Network pic.twitter.com/V8yHLVKd3i

— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) February 21, 2025

Yankees top pitching prospect Will Warren replaced Stroman to start the second. The 25-year-old righty might have sported an ugly 10.32 ERA in five big league spot starts in 2024, but he opened eyes by striking out Trea Turner, Bryce Harper, and Alec Bohm in order in his MLB debut. The sweeper is seen as his best pitch, but many scouts are encouraged by the development of his changeup, a pitch which could help cement him as a big league regular. It certainly looked filthy out of the gate, Warren tallying two strikeouts in the second on a pair of nasty cambios.

Will Warren, Filthy 87mph Changeup. 😷 pic.twitter.com/oiNT61r6nT

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) February 21, 2025

He faced a little more resistance in the third yielding a walk and single, but stranded the pair by blowing a 95 mph four-seamer by Christopher Morel for the inning-ending strikeout. Should the Yankees find a trade partner for Stroman, Warren would likely become the team’s sixth starter, if he’s not the favorite for that role already.

Perhaps the biggest story to watch this spring is the third base competition, the Yankees content to leave it between DJ LeMahieu, Oswaldo Cabrera, and Oswald Peraza to win the job rather than bring in a starting caliber player. Peraza got the first crack today and lined a single to center in his first AB.

We also got our first look at JT Brubaker in pinstripes. The Yankees acquired him last year in the midst of a lengthy Tommy John rehab, the 31-year-old righty last having pitched in the majors in 2022 with the Pirates. He pitched a scoreless fourth but had to depart in the fifth after getting struck in the back by a comebacker line drive.

The Yankees doubled their lead in the fourth, Pablo Reyes, Peraza, and Everson Pereira drawing three straight walks to load the bases with no outs. Domínguez drove in the third run by beating out a potential groundball double play before Brendan Jones — subbed in for Goldschmidt — knocked in the fourth run with a single to right.

It was far from a clean game by the Rays, the Yankees capitalizing on a handful of blunders. There was the throwing error in the first that allowed both Domínguez and Bellinger to score on the Goldschmidt double. Then in the fourth, Xavier Isaac was thrown out at second after overrunning the bag on a single to center. We saw the ABS challenge system in use for the first time, the Rays unsuccessfully using both of their challenges to dispute balls called on two of their pitchers.

Both teams had subbed out most of their starters by the sixth inning, the Yankees giving opportunities to prospects like T.J. Rumfield and George Lombard Jr. We also got a look at rarely-seen reliever Scott Effross, the righty missing all of 2023 to Tommy John surgery and making just three MLB appearances in 2024 after recovering from lower back surgery.

The Yankees’ best chance to tack on some final runs came in the eighth, a pair of singles by Jesus Rodriguez and Andrew Velazquez putting runners on the corners with no outs. However, Velazquez got doubled off at first after Chandler Simpson made a diving catch on a sinking liner by Rumfield to center. Overall though, a 4-0 win to open spring training is just the start they hoped for.

The Yankees travel to Dunedin tomorrow for an exhibition against the Blue Jays. Carlos Rodón makes his spring debut against Easton Lucas. First pitch is scheduled for 1:07pm ET, though YES Network will not carry the broadcast — that can be found over on Sportsnet.

Box Score