Yankee Batting Champ Remakes History in Epic Showdown!
The New York Yankees have added another hard-throwing pitcher to their collection.
While Carlos Lagrange has stolen most of the headlines when it comes to New York Yankees pitcher this offseason, a new contender has emerged to potentially make the Yankees' big-league roster. Yovanny Cruz. New York signed Cruz back in mid-November in a move that basically received zero notoriety.
And why would it? Yankees fans were waiting on far bigger news at the time, and Cruz had never thrown a single pitch on the major-league level. But on Friday against the Atlanta Braves, the 26-year-old made his Spring Training debut for the Yanks, and to say he was electrifying would be an understatement.
Cruz tossed just one inning, but he opened up a whole lot of eyes by hitting 102 mph on his fastball (and his sinker ) and striking out two hitters. He threw just 15 pitches in the frame, and now, it looks like New York may another sleeper bullpen arm in its midst. The right-hander had spent time with three different organization before joining the Yankees, having stints with the Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres and, most recently, the Boston Red Sox.
New York Yankees pitcher Yovanny Cruz. Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images. Across seven minor-league seasons, Cruz has logged a 3.