Inside Yankees’ early workouts after World Series disappointment

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TAMPA, Fla. — For New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe, the feeling was back. But this time it was different, more intense.

“Both years, we were pissed off,” he said. “But this year, we were more introspective of what we’ve got to do.”

In 2024, a group of Yankees arrived early at the team’s player development complex, eager to forget the feeling of missing the playoffs for the first time in eight years.

This winter, a bigger group of players, led by captain Aaron Judge, returned even earlier with thoughts of revenge following a terrible 4-1 loss in the World Series to the Los Angeles Dodgers, several of whom spent the offseason talking smack about them.

“It goes from one motivator — us not making the playoffs in 2023, and saying, ‘That’s not going to happen again,’ to just finding another motivator, which is, ‘Hey, we made the playoffs, but when you wear pinstripes it’s not just about making the playoffs, it’s about winning a World Series.’

“Coming up short on that goal is definitely going to be a big motivator for us later.”

Judge, Volpe, catcher Austin Wells, infielders DJ LeMahieu, Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Oswaldo Cabrera, outfielder Jasson Domínguez and starting pitchers Carlos Rodón, Clarke Schmidt and Luis Gil all were among the big leaguers from last year’s squad who filed into the facility in December and early January.

They remembered the moments after their Game 5 loss at Yankee Stadium and how the Dodgers celebrated on their home field.

They remembered the fifth-inning catastrophe that saw them take a 5-0 lead with ace Gerrit Cole on the mound and blow it with a trio of defensive mistakes that were replayed ad nauseam on TV and social media in the months following.

They remembered the 45 minutes they spent with the clubhouse doors closed after the loss — the teary eyes and the slumped shoulders. The veterans gave speeches about family and camaraderie and how far they had come.

They thought about how that crew that became the first Yankees team to reach the World Series since 2009 may never be all together again in the same room.

“I’ll remember it forever,” Volpe said. “That feeling? That’s the feeling that has driven me every day since. The speeches. Just the devastation. I don’t think I’ve had a feeling like that to push me before, and I think it’s helped me.”

“Everybody was emotional,” Cabrera said.

Many Yankees showed up surprised to see others already there. Some heard about the workouts happening and decided they needed to be around more often and right away.

“What am I doing?” Cabrera recalled thinking to himself when he showed up one day and Judge was in the middle of a full workout. “I have to be here.”

Manager Aaron Boone took note of the activity. He said he thought a lot this offseason about how to approach rallying his players. Going into 2024, the sting of missing the playoffs was an easy reminder. Would losing in the World Series be enough motivation since it’s impressive enough to make it there in the first place?

“There’s no question in my mind, last year, we had that edge,” Boone said. “We had a hunger. Maybe in part due to coming off a season where we didn’t make the postseason, for the people that experienced that here, I think that showed itself very early in camp, but we’ve got to work at that. That’s not a given.

“You hold each other accountable. We want to walk through these doors with a hunger that can be a difference-maker, especially in a long, tough season.”

Judge added that there was also a practical reason to get everyone together as early as possible. He wants teammates to be able to talk to each other about how they feel when things are going right for them, and what tends to happen when they’re struggling. He wants players to be able to talk and help each other as much as possible in the dugout and the clubhouse.

He also wanted to deepen bonds.

“To me, it’s an important time,” he said. “There’s no games. Nothing really matters. It’s really about getting your work in and kind of preparing. It helps us. We can work and fail and fail and fail and learn from it and talk through it without the consequence and pressure of playing in a game. It makes it easier to learn.”

In December, the Yankees traded for center fielder Cody Bellinger. He also showed up early, wanting to get to know his new teammates. He brought a unique perspective. He could tell how losing in the World Series was weighing on some players. He was on the Dodgers teams that lost the World Series in 2017 and 2018, but he also won it all with them in 2020.

He could tell immediately that the trauma of losing in the world championship last season had brought the Yankees closer together.

“The clubhouse is very close, very tight,” he said. “I think it feels very much like a brotherhood.”

Judge said he believed the time they spent together this winter before spring training helped soothe some of the pain of losing in the World Series, but it may never go away.

“Losing is the motivator,” he said. “Coming up just short. … Putting all that work in just to come into second place, that’s never a good feeling.”

(Top photo of Aaron Judge: Kim Klement Neitzel / Imagn Images)