How do you think Gary Sanchez and Aaron Boone will work together?
-- Ronnie A., New York
Everything so far indicates that Boone is intent upon having a friendly relationship with all of his players. It spoke volumes that Boone prioritized his relationship with Sanchez, setting up a December date in New York to get to know him. General manager Brian Cashman was clear about a warmer touch being a prerequisite when he said that former manager Joe Girardi's "communication and connectivity" were lacking. Though Sanchez never publicly complained about Girardi (to the contrary, Sanchez thanked Girardi for making him a better player), there did appear to be friction.
"Catcher in Major League Baseball, it's a demanding position," Boone said. "It's a chance to impact like no other position on the field, with things that don't necessarily show up in the stat column. Obviously, he's a tremendous talent. He's already had massive success as a young player. So [I'm] just building that relationship, gaining that trust and letting him know that he's going to be very well supported by me and our coaching staff."
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With Aaron Judge coming back from shoulder surgery, is it 100 percent certain that he will be ready for the beginning of Spring Training?
-- Jacqueline J., San Jose, Calif.
There are never any absolute certainties when it comes to surgery, but the good news is that Judge's Nov. 21 procedure in Los Angeles was relatively non-invasive, involving a loose body cleanup and a cartilage cleanup. The Yankees' statement said that "the anticipated recovery time will be completed in advance of the start of Spring Training."
Cashman said that Judge may not resume hitting as early in the offseason as he usually does, but that shouldn't affect his readiness for early camp workouts or the Feb. 23 Grapefruit League opener against the Tigers.
• Yankees' 2018 Spring Training schedule
"In terms of hitting the ground in Spring Training, he should be fine," Cashman said. "In terms of his normal cage work that he would have started picking up a bat at a certain point, I think that gets delayed for a period of time. In terms of the recovery and rehab, that puts him well in advance of Spring Training."
Will Gleyber Torres be on the Opening Day roster?
-- Clayton S., Rochelle Park, N.J.
Quite possibly. If it were up to some members of the Yankees' coaching staff, Torres, the club's top prospect according to MLB Pipeline, would have broken camp with the team last year following the injury to shortstop Didi Gregorius, making the jump from Class A ball to the Majors. Cashman resisted that temptation, saying that Torres had still yet to play in cold weather and that he didn't want Torres "drinking from a fire hose in April," but they won't be able to hold him back in 2018.
It's also realistic to think that Torres will begin the year back at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he had just 96 plate appearances before sustaining a season-ending left elbow injury this past June, but make no mistake: Torres is coming to New York, and it's going to happen soon.
How does Jacoby Ellsbury fit on the roster for 2018? It seems to me that he would want to be somewhere that he could play every day.
-- Tania P., Corona, N.Y.
At present, Ellsbury is in a position where he needs to come into Spring Training and reclaim his starting center-field job from Aaron Hicks. There have been reports that Ellsbury would consider waiving his no-trade clause for the Giants, but agent Scott Boras recently said that Ellsbury enjoys playing in New York and with the Yankees. Ellsbury is still owed $68.4 million over the next three years, complicating any possible trade.
Boras has also mentioned that Ellsbury came back too quickly from the concussion he sustained on May 24 against the Royals. Ellsbury was hitting .281 with a .771 OPS when he ran into the center-field wall, and he missed 29 of the Yanks' games before being activated in late June. He was one of the team's best players in September, hitting .337 with a .912 OPS, but he had just nine at-bats in the postseason.
Any chance of a reunion with Todd Frazier? The Toddfather seemed like a good fit for the Yankees last year.
-- James W., Charlotte, N.C.
There was early contact between the Yankees and Frazier's agent, Brodie Van Wagenen, though those discussions took a back seat to the long-shot possibility of trading for the Orioles' Manny Machado. Now that Machado appears to be off the table, maybe Frazier re-enters the picture. Frazier loved his time in pinstripes, but the stumbling block is that he surely is looking for a multiyear commitment.
With so much young talent coming, that may not be something that the Yanks are willing to offer at this time. The Yankees believe there are in-house options to play both second and third, with Cashman having listed Miguel Andujar, Thairo Estrada, Torres, Ronald Torreyes and Tyler Wade in the mix.