The Star Ledger-US Presswire
Monday night was the first start of 2013 for highly-touted New York Yankees catcher Austin Romine.
Romine, who was drafted by the Yankees in the second round of the 2007 MLB Draft, was called up sooner than expected. In November, former Yankees catcher Russell Martin signed with the Pittsburgh Pirates, and New York went into to the season with a pair of catchers, Chris Stewart and Francisco Cervelli.
However, Cervelli suffered a broken right hand, allowing Romine to be called up to the big leagues. I am looking forward to watching Romine in pinstripes. The Yankees’ goal should be to get younger and the call-up is not a bad start. He’s 24.
Although Romine is known more for his defense than for his hitting, I am curious to see how he does at the Major League level because the Yankees do not look set at catcher. Cervelli’s contract is up after this season and Stewart to me is not a starting catcher. The good thing about calling Romine up now is that he can get a taste of the big leagues, and the Yankees can watch him and decide if he is the long-term solution at catcher.
I agreed with Joe Girardi’s decision to have Romine catch Andy Pettitte in his first game. If it continues, working with the veteran Pettitte will be good for the young catcher. Pettitte can mentor Romine and perhaps give him advice on how to be a successful catcher.
I am hoping that Austin Romine can turn out to be a reliable catcher for the Yankees. He has the defense but just needs to work on his hitting. If he can do that, he should be okay.
