Yankees hit lots of doubles, still lose 8-7 to Pirates

The Yankees traveled to Bradenton this afternoon to face the Pirates in yet another game without a TV broadcast. Luis Cessa got the start and had a fine outing, holding the Pirates to just one run through three innings. However, Pittsburgh ran away with the game in the fourth inning. It looked like they would cruise to an easy 8-4 victory, but the Yankees rallied in the ninth, as they do. They weren’t able to make up the deficit though, and the Pirates went on to win 8-7.

Here are three key points from the game:

1. It was a day of doubles with Miguel Andujar, Troy Tulowitzki, Greg Bird, and Clint Frazier each hitting a two-bagger. Estevan Florial stole the show, though. He continues to highlight why the Yankees reportedly refused to include him in trade talks over the offseason. He hit not one, but two doubles today. Unfortunately, he was thrown out trying to stretch his second one into a triple. It’s time to work on those baserunning skills.

2. The game got away from the Yankees in the bottom of the fourth. Danny Farquhar made his spring debut today and it didn’t go so well. He gave up a leadoff double, issued two walks, and three runs scored on two RBI singles. Stephen Tarpley took over with two on and one out but wasn’t able to limit the damage. Corey Dickerson hit a bases-clearing triple making it five earned runs for Farquhar. It’s great to see him healthy though, and this was his first game back since he suffered a brain hemorrhage last summer. He’ll need extra time to shake the rust off.

3. To reiterate the point that Kento made earlier, it might be time for the Yankees to move on from Austin Romine as their primary backup catcher. He didn’t have a good day on either side of the plate. Not only were the Pirates safe on three out of four stolen base attempts, but Romine was charged with a throwing error as well. He singled, grounded into a double play, and struck out swinging before Ryan Lavarnway subbed in.

Highlight of the game

Tomorrow is a split-squad day, with half of the team taking on the Tigers at home, and the other half traveling to play the Blue Jays. YES Network has the home game at 1:05 ET, and the away game will be on MLB.tv at 1:07 ET. The best way to make up for four days without TV games is the ability to watch two games at once, right?