YANKEE NOTES
TAMPA – His body feels strong and his mind is clear. Now Jason Giambi would like to be known as a full-time first baseman.
“Joe [Torre] and I talked and it’s glaring. When I DH, my numbers are terrible,” Giambi said before putting on an impressive power show in BP and having coach Larry Bowa hit him countless ground balls at first during yesterday’s initial full-squad workout in front of 2,402 at Legends Field. “I don’t know what it is, Donnie [Mattingly] and I have worked on it and we have talked about it and they are bad. When I play first base, I don’t know, maybe I am ADD, it gives me something to do. I play a lot better.
“If they want me to be that player that I was at the end of the year last year, driving in runs and hitting big home runs, that’s the way to go.”
How different are Giambi’s numbers when he plays first versus being the DH?
A lot.
In the past three years, Giambi has hit .217 (112-for-517) with 29 homers, 77 RBIs and has an on-base percentage of .384 as the DH. While playing first, Giambi batted .274 (189-for-691) with 56 homers, 157 RBIs and an on-base
percentage of .427.
Last season, as DH, Giambi hit .209 (37-for-177) with eight homers, 22 RBIs and a .404 on-base percentage. As a first baseman he batted .319 (76-for-238) with 24 homers, 65 RBIs and a .471 on-base percentage.
Since the only other first baseman in camp is Andy Phillips, Torre doesn’t have a Tino Martinez or John Olerud to play defense for Giambi. At this time last year Phillips hadn’t played first base yet.
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George Steinbrenner stopped by Torre’s office for the fifth straight day. Asked why he has been more visible, The Boss said, “I can’t teach (Torre and Brian Cashman) but I can be around them to lend support.”
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RHP Tanyon Sturtze threw off a mound for the first time. While he experienced no problem with his shoulder, he wasn’t pleased.
“I was very dominating from Little League distance but when I moved back I wasn’t so dominating,” Sturtze said of the 10-minute session that started with him throwing at the bottom of the hill. “I was mentally prepared to be better than that. I was a little disappointed. I didn’t get some balls to the plate and I didn’t hit my spots.”
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OF Kevin Reese needed stitches to close a gash over his left eye after a fly ball hit him. … When Giambi spotted Lee Mazzilli walking through the clubhouse, Giambi said, “That’s the reason I am going to have a big year. There is another Italian in the clubhouse.” … Octavio Dotel was pleased a lawsuit in U.S. District Court, N.Y., that he was involved in was dismissed. The case centered on an alleged phone card scam in the Dominican Republic. David Ortiz, Miguel Tejada and Pedro Martinezwere also named in the lawsuit.