David Robertson will arrive in Tampa for spring training in less than a week and he doesn’t know what role he’ll play in the Yankees’ bullpen.
According to the right-hander, that’s fine with him.
“I’ll just show up ready,” said Robertson, who spoke to pitching coach Larry Rothschild a month ago on the subject. “I could definitely be a multi-inning guy. If you need more innings, I’ll go out there and throw them. I’m not worried about it.”
In a bullpen that features Aroldis Chapman, Dellin Betances, Chad Green, Adam Warren and Tommy Kahnle, new manager Aaron Boone figures to have plenty of choices at his disposal.
When Robertson came back to the Yankees in August in a trade from the White Sox, he insisted he didn’t care what inning he pitched and that’s his attitude heading into 2018.
“I don’t know if I’ll be in the fifth, sixth or seventh inning,” Robertson said. “It doesn’t matter to me.”
What does matter is the Yankees getting back to the postseason, where Robertson — often used in lengthier outings than he’s accustomed to — got to within a game of the World Series.
“I don’t see why we can’t win a World Series,” said Robertson, who was honored at the Thurman Munson Awards Dinner benefitting AHRC at the Grand Hyatt on Tuesday. “We’ve got a lot of talent. It’s just a matter of putting it together.”
Robertson, who won a World Series title with the Yankees in 2009, said he was sorry to see Joe Girardi be let go.
“I came back [to the Yankees] and I didn’t notice anything,” Robertson said. “Joe spoke to us at the end of the season, saying he may not be back. I don’t know if he had an inkling, but I didn’t.”
He has texted occasionally with Boone this offseason and was also excited by the addition of Giancarlo Stanton.
“He’s an exceptional player,” Robertson said of Stanton, his teammate during the WBC. “There’s a lot of drive in that guy. … I would never have thought we’d get him, but now we’ve got two giant guys in the clubhouse.”
The biggest adjustment for Stanton, according to Robertson, will be dealing with his new surroundings.
“The game speeds up real quick,” Robertson said of playing in New York compared to other cities. “The atmosphere is better. It’s loud. Every game is do-or-die. It takes time to get used to that feeling when you’re out there playing.”