How late spring will bruise these Yankees

How the Yankees’ abbreviated spring will pressure players who could end or end the season

Players — particularly hitters — complain annually about the length of spring training.

This is not like days gone by for the group reaching a 40-man roster. They don’t sell tires in the off-season. Your job is to stay in shape 12 months of the year.

I’m bridging an earlier era – the 1980s – with this one. I remember players in Florida and Arizona were out of shape and working their way into better shape. I also remember smoking cigarettes in clubhouses, drinking beer and having lots of magazines lying around that aren’t safe for work.