Around the Empire: Yankees news - 4/1/23

New York Post | Mark Sanchez: Anthony Volpe had a very successful Opening Day against the San Francisco Giants, and is immediately a homegrown fan favorite after his impressive spring training. When reflecting on his Opening Day experience, he had a quote about how it was the most exciting day of his life. Thankfully, the young shortstop managed to get some sleep, and the rest of his day was detailed in Sanchez’s piece from when he woke up to day’s end.

NJ.com | Max Goodman: Speaking of Volpe, what’s an Opening Day without some jersey sale updates? After the game ended against the Giants, only one Volpe jersey remained in Yankee Stadium. The expectations for the shortstop are high, but according to a merchandise store worker, they’ve never seen anything like it. Yankees fans love their newest young player, and it’s showing big time.

Yahoo Sports | Alex Smith: Volpe had an awesome first MLB game, but one of the storylines that made its way out of the game against the Giants was Gerrit Cole’s impressive outing. He recorded the most strikeouts for any Yankees pitcher on Opening Day. The previous record was nine, held by Tim Leary, but Cole broke it registering 11 (though Cole was happy to acknowledge that Leary was a fellow UCLA Bruin). He only allowed three hits and two walks on the day with no runs to add to those strikeouts.

MLB.com | Thomas Harrigan: Finally, old friend Gary Sánchez has found a new home on the West Coast with the very team that the Yankees played on Opening Day. After a season with the Minnesota Twins where he registered a 89 wRC+ and 1.3 fWAR, the Giants signed him to a minor league deal. It’s reported that he’ll go to the Giants’ spring training site in Scottsdale, Arizona before heading to the minors. He also has the ability to opt out if he’s not promoted to the major leagues by May 1st. It’s unfortunate that Sánchez has fallen this far after being traded from the Yankees in March 2022, but any opportunity for him to recover and make his way in the major leagues is a good thing.

And hey, if he can make it up to San Francisco, he sure knows how to hit some dingers there.