Bronx Bomber Ball

Coming off their sweep of the red hot Seattle Mariners, The Yankees bats were left at sea as the Yanks fell to the Tampa Bay Rays 2-1.   Credit: Mike Carlson/Getty Images

With the deep and talented roster that Brian Cashman and the Yankees have assembled, it is easy to overlook one player that could play a larger role than you might think this season and that player is Aaron Hicks. Hicks was acquired two seasons ago and had an up and down 2017 season. One of our own wrote about Hicks last season as a potential bounce back player to watch and it appeared early on like it would prove to be true. Hicks got off to a strong start before injuries derailed his campaign. Hicks did not begin the 2017 season as a starter but he received regular starts in the outfield while Joe Girardi employed a rotation that appeared to be successful at keeping the Yankees outfielders fresh and healthy. Hicks was on his way to a career year through June 25 when he excited a game against the Texas Rangers with an injury to his right oblique. Hicks would return in August before injuring his left oblique in early September. There were many positives for Hicks in 2017 and he appe...

Brian Cashman has made a lot of high profile moves over the course of the past few seasons, and while those moves have put the core of this year’s roster in place, a less heralded trade he made early in spring training could play an important role in how the roster shapes up entering the season. The Yankees acquired Brandon Drury in a three-team trade with the Tampa Bay Rays and Arizona Diamondbacks that cost them pitcher Taylor Widener and infielder Nick Solak. Drury is 25 years old and has primarily played second and third base in his three-year career. He has also played some outfield and the flexibility that he has displayed in his career thus far makes him an intriguing option who seems like he still has room to grow.  Credit: Patrick Breen/azcentralsports

We all know how last season ended, seeing the Houston Astros celebrate winning the American League Championship, while the Yankees left Minute Maid Park dejected. While the 2017 team over-performed greatly it was still a bitter pill to swallow that they came so close from appearing in a record 41st World Series. While last season did not end up the way the organization, players and fans had hoped, it gave everyone so much hope as to what was to come in 2018. After re-loading this Winter with the trades that brought Giancarlo Stanton and Brandon Drury to the Bronx as well as bringing back CC Sabathia the Yankees look even stronger than they finished 2017. (With apologies to Chase Headley, Bryan Mitchell and Starlin Castro). The American League boasts 15 teams, but in all likelihood, there’s only three that stand in their way of getting to the World Series. The most likely team being the defending champion Houston Astros, the Cleveland Indians who the Yankees disposed of in the ALDS, an...

Since he was acquired in December of 2014, we have watched Didi Gregorius transform from a tentative young prospect tasked with replacing Yankee icon Derek Jeter into one of the energetic faces of this Yankee team and one of the favorites of the fanbase. Didi had a rough start to his Yankee career, but he steadied himself and has improved overall in each of the last three seasons. That tentative prospect is gone now and has been replaced with a comfortable and confident player who has become one of the centerpieces of this Yankee squad. On a team that featured Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez, it was often Didi penciled into the cleanup role and coming up with clutch plays in key moments. After turning in his best season yet in 2017 it leaves us asking, how much better can Sir Didi get? Credit: David Dermer/Associated Press

The Yankees bullpen has been a strength of their team in recent years and thanks to some great work by Brian Cashman last season, the group got even stronger. Although the new faces played an important role in the team’s success down the stretch and in the playoffs some familiar faces remained, led by flame throwing closer Aroldis Chapman. Chapman is entering the second season of his five-year deal with the team and although he had an up and down season plagued by injury and inconsistency, he was eventually able to regain his form and lead the group down the stretch last season. We do not know how Aaron Boone will deploy this Yankee bullpen but it would be a huge boost to the club if he could remain healthy and consistent all season. When he is right, he is electric and one of the best in baseball but heading into this season, which Aroldis Chapman will the Yankees get? Credit: Getty Images

For all the hype and intrigue surrounding this Yankee team and their young stars as they open spring training, perhaps one of the most intriguing players heading into this season is Greg Bird. After bursting onto the scene in the second half of the 2015 season, Bird has struggled to remain on the field and missed significant portions of the last two seasons. After tearing up spring training 2017, Bird missed most of 2017 with reoccurring foot and ankle injuries but was able to return in August for the stretch run and the playoffs. When he has been on the field Bird has shown solid defensive capabilities and hitting chops that fit Yankee Stadium perfectly. The key question as always is, is this the year he will finally stay healthy? If he can, Bird will be a big addition to a Yankee lineup that already looks loaded. Credit: Rich Schultz/AP Photo

Opening day is quickly approaching and the excitement surrounding the Yankees heading into 2018 is at an all-time high. With the addition of Giancarlo Stanton to what was already a powerhouse of a lineup, the Yankees are once again a World Series or bust club. Expectations that George Steinbrenner lived by year in and year out when he was as at the helm. The Yankees are obviously no stranger to these expectations. They are well deserved considering it’s hard to imagine the Yankees not making the postseason in 2018 with the product they will put on the field. Here are five bold predictions that could be the difference between the Yankees being a solid contending team or being far and away the best team in baseball. Photo Credit: Getty Images

The Yankees will head into this years’ spring training with considerably more hype and buzz than previous years. The Yankees look different now than they did in any other time in recent memory. The roster is loaded with young players and budding stars but for the first time in several years, the Yankees will feature a bonafide superstar in the middle of their lineup in Giancarlo Stanton. Stanton is as fearsome a hitter as you’ll find in MLB and is coming off season in which he won the National League MVP award. He will now join Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez in the middle of what should be a really fun lineup to watch every day. For the cost of just Starlin Castro and a few lower level prospects, Stanton will now call Yankee Stadium home. Credit: NYPost.com/Getty Images