Around the Empire: Yankees news - 3/26/21

Yahoo Sports | Garrett Stepien: The Yankees have an important roster decision looming, as midnight was their deadline to guarantee Jay Bruce a roster spot. It looks like they won’t add Bruce to the 26-man, so unless he joins them within the next 48 hours, he can seek a major league spot with another club. This would seem to signal that the team will roll with Mike Tauchman as their fifth outfielder (though on that front, rumors swirled that the Yankees had received trade offers for Tauchman). Bruce got off to a hot start in camp, but has cooled recently. Tauchman’s incumbency and years of remaining team control made Bruce’s task an uphill climb all along.

New York Daily News | Kristie Ackert: Nick Nelson stands to get some run in the Yankees’ bullpen with the team down a pair of relievers at the moment. Nelson spoke about how he spent the offseason working on his ability to bounce back. Brought up mainly as a starter, the right-hander had to adjust to working out of the bullpen in short, frequent spurts. He’s looked sharp thus far in spring training, allowing just one run in 8.2 spring frames.

MLB.com | Mike Lupica: Lupica highlights something about DJ LeMahieu: his height. At a sturdy 6-foot-4, LeMahieu towers over most second basemen of the past. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, no player as tall as LeMahieu has played more than 200 games at the position. With every ringing double and home run, LeMahieu shatters the stereotype of the relatively small and quick keystone man.

CBS Sports | Mike Axisa: Here’s a quick roundtable on a simple question: who has the best team in New York? To my eye, the Yankees are still the kings of NYC, trumping the crosstown Mets by a much narrower margin than usual. That this is even a legitimate question is a fun change of pace.