{"id":32725,"date":"2020-07-23T09:40:00","date_gmt":"2020-07-23T06:40:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/michael-kay-david-cone-and-paul-oneill-talk-2020-yankees\/"},"modified":"2020-07-23T09:40:00","modified_gmt":"2020-07-23T06:40:00","slug":"michael-kay-david-cone-and-paul-oneill-talk-2020-yankees","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/michael-kay-david-cone-and-paul-oneill-talk-2020-yankees\/","title":{"rendered":"#Michael Kay, David Cone and Paul O\u2019Neill talk 2020 Yankees"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;<strong>#Michael Kay, David Cone and Paul O\u2019Neill talk 2020 Yankees<\/strong>&#8221;<\/p>\n<div>\n                        <em>Yankees Opening Day has finally arrived, but before the first pitch, the YES broadcast team of Michael Kay, David Cone and Paul O\u2019Neill chatted with The Post\u2019s Steve Serby. <\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: When was the last time the Yankees had a pitcher like Gerrit Cole?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> Even when the Yankees had Roger Clemens, he was kind of later on in his career. I\u2019m not sure the Yankees have had a power right-hander like him ever in their prime.<\/p>\n<p><strong>O\u2019Neill:<\/strong> Roger was not a guy that took it for granted, \u201cI\u2019m gonna throw the ball by people,\u201d he knew how to pitch.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> I\u2019ve been following the Yankees since free agency began. Obviously Reggie (Jackson) was a great signing. \u2026 There\u2019s so many, Catfish (Hunter) and (Dave) Winfield. \u2026 But this guy is everything that you could possibly hope. I can\u2019t believe how good he is, it almost seems like it\u2019s too good to be true. But then you talk to people, they go no, this is him, he loves the <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/game\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"7\" title=\"Game\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">game<\/a>, he loves to talk about it, he loves to break it down, he loves to help his teammates. I don\u2019t think this is a guy that will wilt in New York at all.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: With 12 or so starts, what can you envision from a fresh Gerrit Cole in the playoffs?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> He can win the game all by himself. Whether it\u2019s (Max) Scherzer or (Stephen) Strasburg, we were kinda reminded how important starting pitching can be last year with the Washington Nationals in postseason.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_16023849\"><img alt=\"Paul O'Neill, Michael Kay and David Cone\" data- data- height=\"441\" width=\"662\"><\/img><figcaption><span>Paul O\u2019Neill, Michael Kay and David Cone<\/span><span>Robert Sabo<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>O\u2019Neill:<\/strong> In the (2019) playoffs, he for the first time looked like he was getting overworked. This might even have been a blessing for him to have this break. You just see a guy that\u2019s in the prime of his career that\u2019s just a little bit better than the rest of the pitchers.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> He\u2019s not gonna be on fumes at all.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: A healthy Aaron Judge?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> A healthy Judge is right squarely in the middle of an MVP conversation, because he does everything so well, he plays great defense in right field so he\u2019s not a one-dimensional player.<\/p>\n<p><strong>O\u2019Neill:<\/strong> I think he has something to prove obviously because of the injuries in the past couple years. He does EVERYTHING for this team.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: MVP candidate?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>O\u2019Neill:<\/strong> I think so \u2014 because of the people around him, too. He\u2019s gonna have a ton of opportunities to do big things offensively. He does a lot of other things that don\u2019t show up.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Which Yankee will lead the team in home runs?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> I think Judge will. \u2026 I think he\u2019s locked in.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: But he won\u2019t be aided by Judge\u2019s Chambers.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> It\u2019s still there \u2014 there\u2019s just no judges in there.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: So how many home runs?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> Let\u2019s do the math \u2026 19 home runs.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: A healthy Giancarlo Stanton?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>O\u2019Neill:<\/strong> I think that he has something to prove to himself.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> A healthy Stanton is gonna be probably more of a DH this year because the Yankees are healthy; Aaron Hicks is back. Stanton\u2019s not gonna be relied on in left field \u2026 just do what he\u2019s always done on average and it will be perfect for the Yankees.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Gary Sanchez behind the plate?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> This is the year where he answers a lot of the critics\u2019 questions about whether he can be the long-term catcher or not. He\u2019s still, to me, the biggest offensive threat of any catcher in the big leagues.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> They\u2019ve been working on him getting lower, where he could block pitches better and frame a little bit better. He\u2019s got a great arm, I think that\u2019s gonna pay off in this season because I think you\u2019re gonna see more running than you\u2019ve seen in the last three years in baseball. He calls a much better game than people think, and I think he\u2019s gotten better at blocking pitches and staying away from the passed ball.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Have the Yankees had a young talent like Gleyber Torres that you can remember?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> I think probably when (Derek) Jeter first broke in and won the Rookie of the Year award. \u2026 Jeter didn\u2019t have these kind of power numbers.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> Probably (Robinson) Cano when he first came up. What a swing, and he developed unbelievable power. Gleyber\u2019s a superstar, he really is. He\u2019s a No. 3 hitter for 10 years.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Could DJ LeMahieu win a battling title?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> I think so. He\u2019s got the perfect swing for it, he\u2019s the one guy that\u2019s not shiftable in baseball, he\u2019s almost like a throwback, they play him straight up because he uses foul line to foul line. If he\u2019s gonna lead off, and you\u2019ve got Aaron Judge behind him, he\u2019s gonna see a lot of pitches to hit.<\/p>\n<p><strong>O\u2019Neill:<\/strong> I think actually there\u2019s two people on this team that if they got off to great starts and got their heads into just playing the way that they can play, have an opportunity to win a batting title \u2014 Gleyber can do it, and I think LeMahieu can do it, because both of them can hit in counts the way the old-school art of hitting was.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> He\u2019s just a tremendous contact hitter, hits the ball all over the ballpark, he hits the ball as hard as anybody almost. That\u2019s why those balls get through the infield.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Is a .400 hitter possible?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> In a 60-game schedule, absolutely. It easily could h<a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/download-scripts-themes-apps\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"9\" title=\"Download Scripts &amp; Themes &amp; Apps\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">app<\/a>en.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Is LeMahieu a threat to hit .400?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> It would not surprise me.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: James Paxton?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> Power left-handed starters are a real commodity, they always have been, they always will be. The strikeout power left-handed starter, he\u2019s at or near the top of the list.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> And he\u2019s got a lot to play for as well because he\u2019s gonna be a free agent. I don\u2019t think he has ever been unnerved by New York. When he\u2019s healthy, he\u2019s as good as anybody.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: J. A. Happ?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> His problem obviously was keeping the ball in the ballpark last year; his damage was kinda quick damage, as we say. He\u2019s a candidate to bounce back.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Jordan Montgomery?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> He\u2019s throwing the ball in the mid-90s now all of a sudden. He\u2019s one of those guys that comes back from Tommy John surgery stronger, throwing harder. His stuff is better than it\u2019s ever been.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> When (Masahiro) Tanaka comes back, he\u2019s your fifth starter, and he\u2019s been pitching like he has No. 2 or 3 starter stuff.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: The injury concern for pitchers?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> It was easier for them to keep their arms in shape during the shutdown. Most pitchers nowadays throw much more than the pitchers of yesteryear. I\u2019m not as worried about the pitchers, although the big starting pitchers you\u2019re gonna have to watch, because they look like they\u2019re ready to throw seven innings now or six innings or 100 pitches or so, (but) exhibition games and practice games are not the same as real games.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> The one place that they don\u2019t have unbelievable depth would be shortstop. I would be afraid not so much of injuries, but I would be afraid of COVID-19 hitting people at the wrong time and then having several people go down. The teams that manage that the best and keep the guys healthy and away from this virus, I think they have the best chance to succeed.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Would David Cone have been able to pitch his perfect game on Yogi Berra Day with no fans at the Stadium?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> You had two strikes on a hitter and the crowd started to get on their feet and cheer for a strikeout, that was something that I felt and fed off of, so that would be hard to say. These players are conditioned \u2014 and certainly I was, and most are \u2014 that they put the blinders on. Once you get into a competition and you get into your job, whether you\u2019re a pitcher or hitter, you tend to narrow your focus pretty well. That\u2019s the X factor, that little extra adrenalin rush you get from the crowd will not be there.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_16023878\"><img alt=\"David Cone is mobbed by his Yankees teammates after throwing a perfect game against the Expos on July 18, 1999.\" data- data- height=\"441\" width=\"662\"><\/img><figcaption><span>David Cone is mobbed by his Yankees teammates after throwing a perfect game against the Expos on July 18, 1999.<\/span><span>AP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p><strong>Q: How will players handle no fans?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>O\u2019Neill:<\/strong> Sure, the first game or two, it\u2019s gonna be strange, but progressively you get used to it. I think that it\u2019s gonna be very easy for players once they get over the initial empty stadiums to concentrate and realize that these games matter.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> Buck Showalter told me that the guys that are self-motivated will be best served. Some teams actually ride the crest of a crowd, but the Yankees have a veteran presence, and they have young guys that have good heads on their shoulders. When you\u2019re a Yankee, you have to motivate yourself. Other teams say, \u201cOK, we want to make the playoffs,\u201d the Yankees have to make the World <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/watch-movies-tv-seriess\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"8\" title=\"Watch Movies &amp; TV Series\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Series<\/a>. And I think in some way, there are some players that are gonna benefit from no fans in the stands, and I think that Stanton might be one of \u2019em. Stanton seems to have emerged as the A-Rod to Aaron Judge\u2019s Jeter, so every time he struggles, even if he strikes out the first two times in a game, he got booed. That\u2019s not gonna be the case this year.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Zack Britton as a closer until Aroldis Chapman is back?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> Been there, done it, he\u2019s fine. What a nice insurance policy for the Yankees to have.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> Britton can close probably on 20 of the 30 teams in baseball.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: How many at-bats for Miguel Andujar?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> It\u2019s sorta two-fold: how many at-bats can Aaron Boone find for him, and how many at-bats can Miguel Andujar force on his own by playing so well?<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> If you\u2019re gonna put Andujar in the outfield, you\u2019re gonna lose something. With Stanton as the DH, unless Gio (Urshela) stumbles, when I don\u2019t think he will, if they can Andujar two games a week to rest Urshela and maybe one game a week to rest Stanton. \u2026 If he gets 100 at-bats, I think they\u2019d be really lucky.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Unsung hero?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> I would probably say Brett Gardner, just because of all the intangibles he brings that are hard to quantify. He\u2019s now absolutely the de facto captain for the clubhouse without a C on his uniform. He\u2019s gonna exhaust every ounce that he can to finish his career as a Yankee, and that just speaks volumes to me.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> Probably (Mike) Tauchman. I think he could play a big role, I thought he played a huge role last year.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: How much of a challenge will policing teammates on the road be for Aaron Boone and the leaders?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>O\u2019Neill:<\/strong> I think the Yankees are in a unique situation there because they focus on winning is so important, and it\u2019s driven in the minor league all the way to the major leagues where if you\u2019ve gotta stay in 60 days in a row to play games and win a World Series, you do it.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> I don\u2019t think it\u2019s gonna be that difficult, because we are in the age of <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/social-mediaa\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"1\" title=\"Social Media\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">social media<\/a>, and everybody\u2019s got a phone and anybody can snap a picture at any time. I don\u2019t see it as a real problem at all. I think the modern-day ballplayers are more prone to play video games in their hotel room as opposed to closing down bars. This isn\u2019t the \u201980s or \u201990s anymore.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> I could never see Gardy (Brett Gardner) snitch, he\u2019s not that guy, but I could definitely see him, you know, \u201cThis is the job we have to do.\u201d And Aaron Judge kind of has emerged as a de facto leader as well where he said, \u201cFor two months, no restaurants, no going out, nothing like that. We have a job to do, you have your whole life to do that when everything returns to normal.\u201d I think that\u2019s the mindset that they have to have, I think they all have to police each other, I think Aaron Boone is a great guy to do that where he can do it without having to be overbearing, he\u2019s a communicator and he could tell them, \u201cThis is what we\u2019re trying to do, and if anybody gets sick, it\u2019s really gonna set us back from doing it.\u201d There\u2019s gonna be temptations, these guys have done most whatever they want since they were kids because they\u2019ve always been catered to because they\u2019re the best at what they do, and now they\u2019re gonna take a step back and say, \u201cI\u2019ve got to live a very spartan life, I can\u2019t enjoy the spoils of being a major leaguer, and if I operate under that premise, then maybe I can enjoy the spoils of being a world champion.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: The Yankees\u2019 mindset?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> I see big confidence right now. I think the team is ready to bust out. Since the acquisition of Giancarlo Stanton, they feel like offensively they\u2019re gonna have their A lineup for the first time.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> I think they\u2019re looking at this as a season that a championship is gonna be something to celebrate, and I really think they\u2019re into it.<\/p>\n<p><strong>O\u2019Neill:<\/strong> I expect the Yankees to get off to a good start. I think Aaron Boone does a wonderful job as far as realizing and having relationships with the players.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Who is the Yankees\u2019 biggest threat?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> The Rays are really good, they\u2019ve got depth, they certainly know how to use their bullpen, they\u2019ve used the opener a lot over the last couple of years. And they have a good farm system, so if anybody gets hurt or anybody goes down with COVID-19, they\u2019ll be able to plug and play. I think the Indians over a short season will be a threat, and the Astros will benefit from no crowd.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> The Tampa Bay Rays are very good. They have an extremely deep farm system, and people aren\u2019t talking about them enough right now.<\/p>\n<p><strong>O\u2019Neill:<\/strong> In the World Series, you would look at the Dodgers. The Nationals, they\u2019ve lost a big-name player (Anthony Rendon, and Ryan Zimmerman opted out), but they\u2019re still the world champions, and the Houston Astros are gonna have to answer a lot of questions.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Q: Do you expect to see the Yankees in the World Series or win it?<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><strong>Cone:<\/strong> Yes, I do. I expect them to be the front-runners in the American League, absolutely, and I expect the Dodgers to be the front-runners in the National League. With the shortened season, anything can happen though.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Kay:<\/strong> I would pick the Yankees to be in the World Series. I think it should be the Yankees and the Dodgers, then anything can happen in a short series.<\/p>\n<p><strong>O\u2019Neill:<\/strong> If I had to bet my life savings going into the season, I think that the Yankees are put together to win a World Series whether it\u2019s 162 games or 60.\n            <\/div>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>If you want to read more Sports <a href=\"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/category\/news\/\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"2\" title=\"News\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">News<\/a> articles, you can visit our <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/en.buradabiliyorum.com\/general\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">General category.<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<blockquote>\n<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><strong>if you want to watch Movies or Tv Shows go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/dizi.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Dizi.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a> <\/span> for forums sites go to <span style=\"color: #ff9900;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/forum.buradabiliyorum.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Forum.BuradaBiliyorum.Com<\/a><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><span style=\"color: black;\"><a style=\"color: #ff9900;\" href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2020\/07\/23\/michael-kay-david-cone-and-paul-oneill-talk-2020-yankees\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Source<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>&#8220;#Michael Kay, David Cone and Paul O\u2019Neill talk 2020 Yankees&#8221; Yankees Opening Day has finally arrived, but before the first pitch, the YES broadcast team of Michael Kay, David Cone and Paul O\u2019Neill chatted with The Post\u2019s Steve Serby. Q: When was the last time the Yankees had a pitcher like Gerrit Cole? Cone: Even&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":32726,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[42880,42879],"class_list":["post-32725","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-general","tag-david-cone-and-paul-oneill-talk-2020-yankees","tag-michael-kay"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32725","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32725"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32725\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32726"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32725"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32725"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/buradabiliyorum.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32725"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}