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3 biggest Yankees storylines heading into Opening Day

By Justin Girshon |
/ New York Yankees/GettyImages
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It's time to play baseball. The Houston Astros swept the New York Yankees out of the American League Championship Series 158 days ago, but now, the quest for World Series No. 28 is back on.

After an eventful offseason in which the Yankees spent nearly $600 million in free agency and held two major position battles in Spring Training, there are a ton of storylines to watch as the season begins.

Things could've been very different with the San Francisco Giants kciking off the 2023 campaign in the Bronx, but thankfully Aaron Judge remained in town and helped the organization avoid disaster. That's good, right? So are these notable storylines as Opening Day arrives.

3 biggest Yankees storylines heading into Opening Day

Oh Captain, My Captain ... Aaron Judge!

Without a doubt, the most important part of the Yankees offseason was re-signing Judge to a nine-year, $360 million deal. Judge bet on himself in 2022, declining an eight-year, $230.5 million extension before the season, and it paid off.

Judge had an historic campaign that saw him break the American League home run record with 62 blasts and win his first American League MVP. Because of his performance in 2022 (as well as the rest of his career), Judge was highly sought after in free agency, but he returned to the Bronx.

After bringing Judge back, the Yankees announced he would become the team's 16th Captain in franchise history and its first since Derek Jeter retired.

Even though Judge has played in MLB since 2016, Thursday is a big day as it marks the first time he takes the field as the Captain. Being the Captain of the New York Yankees comes with a lot of responsibility, but as long as Judge keeps slugging and the Yankees win, he should continue being revered.

Welcome to the Show, Anthony Volpe!

Once Spring Training began, Anthony Volpe became the star of the show. Volpe, selected with the 30th overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft, was seen by most to play college baseball at Vanderbilt, but he opted to sign with his lifelong favorite team.

Growing up in New York and New Jersey, Volpe has been a Yankees fan his entire life while admiring Derek Jeter. Now, he's looking to become the team's first long-term answer at shortstop since Jeter retired.

Volpe's path to making the Yankees' Opening Day roster wasn't an easy one. While the Yankees publicly and privately talked about how there was an open position battle at shortstop, Volpe was seen as the longshot to win the job because of his lack of experience above Double-A.

However, Volpe was impressive on and off the field, earning his position on the roster. As a 21-year-old, there is an immense amount of pressure on Volpe to perform right away. A big series against the Giants would do wonders for his confidence.

The Yankees Are Starting Who?!

When the Yankees signed Carlos Rodón over the offseason, it cemented the starting rotation as the best in Major League Baseball. But now, after Gerrit Cole's Opening Day start, the Yankees are turning to Clarke Schmidt and Domingo Germán for the second and third games of the season -- something nobody expected two months ago.

Entering Spring Training, it was unclear what roles Schmidt and Germán would play for the Yankees in 2023. However, after it was revealed that Frankie Montas would miss most of 2023, the Yankees opened a competition for his spot in the rotation between the two.

Despite the competition between the pitchers seemingly just starting, both "won" a spot in the rotation when it was announced that Rodón would also start the season on the IL. Now, with Luis Severino also on the IL and Nestor Cortes getting a late start in Spring Training because of a hamstring injury, Schmidt and German are now crucial rotation pieces.

Both pitchers have a lot to prove in 2023, and their starts against the Giants are vastly important.

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