Yankees Notebook: Paul Blackburn’s Role, Cody Bellinger’s Back, More

TAMPA, Fla. — An off day on the schedule for Monday is coming at the perfect time for the New York Yankees.

After flexing their muscles on Saturday with a 5-1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays that was powered by a two-run shot by catcher Austin Wells, the Yankees are settling in for plenty of lineup changes that will happen around Monday’s off day.

Those changes started making their appearance felt on Saturday when Amed Rosario was scratched from the starting lineup shortly before first pitch because of travel issues related to his participation in the World Baseball Classic with Team Dominican Republic. WBC-related issues will continue to wreak havoc on manager Aaron Boone’s lineup over the next couple of weeks with nine Yankees taking part in the tournament.

“The priority has been getting those guys, the position player front of it first, getting those guys fairly regular reps here,” Boone said on Saturday. “They’ve all pretty much played five games or so, and the last two got them all up to six innings. So you take five or six of them out of there, it’s going to create some more opportunities for other guys. It will probably keep some other guys in camp longer, with some more runway and some more looks, which is not a bad thing.

“Nothing really changes on the day to day, but just some guys that maybe otherwise would be short some reps are going to get some opportunities.”

Among the players missing time will be Aaron Judge, who will headline a strong Team USA squad. On Saturday, Boone expressed his excitement about the WBC but also couldn’t help but mention the possibility of more games played at a high level this time of year could result in more injuries.

“Honestly, I’m excited for him. I’m looking forward to following it,” Boone said of Judge. “In some ways, you want to make sure they’re getting what they need and, obviously, you don’t want injuries to happen. But the reality is somebody in the tournament is probably going … something’s going to happen. Doesn’t mean it wouldn’t happen here necessarily.

“Look, I think everyone that is going is very well prepared. There’s risk in everything you do in life. These guys have come in ready to go and checked a lot of boxes this winter to put themselves in position to go do this. At the end of the day, it’s something that’s been very good for the game. I’m looking forward to watching. I’m sure there’ll be some moments you hold your breath a little bit, but that’s okay.”

Cody Bellinger, Giancarlo Stanton updates

Boone said that Cody Bellinger has been sidelined recently by back issues but isn’t concerned that those issues will keep him out of action much longer.

“His back yesterday (Friday) just kind of went out on him a little bit,” Boone said. “The trainers aren’t too concerned about it, and it’s something that crops up on him every now and then, usually sometime in the spring or early in the year.”

Boone thought Bellinger would likely return to the lineup on Tuesday after the off day, which is the day the Yankees are scheduled to host Team Panama in a WBC warm-up.

Giancarlo Stanton likely will see action on Tuesday as well, Boone said.

Blackburn’s arm slot could pay dividends for Yankees

Paul Blackburn got the start for the Yankees on Saturday and was efficient, needing 40 pitches to get through four innings. During that stretch, he scattered four hits and used a pair of double plays to never let Toronto threaten.

Blackburn has now thrown six scoreless innings in his two spring outings, one coming in relief and one as a starter. It’s an indication of how the Yankees could use him in 2026, similar to last season when he appeared in 15 games between the New York Mets and Yankees, with 11 of those appearances coming in relief.

Over his final seven relief appearances of 2025 spanning 12 innings (all with the Yankees), Blackburn posted a 1.50 ERA. On Saturday, he said the lessons learned from that stretch have carried over with him to 2026.

“Last year, there’s a little bit of trying to lower the arm slot and trying to get a little more sink, a little more lift on a sweeper,” Blackburn said. “I felt like I was kind of just fighting myself a lot there. I didn’t feel like I was myself at all. And then in August, I kind of just said ‘screw it’, and went back to kind of how I was, more over the top and more trying to drive the ball down. And when I came here (Yankees), I talked to the pitching guys and that’s where they wanted me.

“When I showed up here, just getting a little more more comfortable back in that arm slot that I’ve always been in and just being able to kind of get my pitches back to where they were in the previous years. It was being able to move the ball around and rolled good outings together.”

Blackburn was an All-Star with the Oakland A’s in 2022 as a starter and that recent history hasn’t been lost on Boone.

“He’s been an All-Star. This guy’s been a good starting pitcher,” Boone said. “You see him go out there and watch today. It’s like he’s carving out there. He’s in complete control of things and commanded the ball well. We brought him back for a reason.”