3 Yankees who made Opening Day roster but shouldn't have long leash

The New York Yankees' Opening Day roster is here ahead of the season-opening series against the San Francisco Giants, and while Anthony Volpe's presence has stolen all the headlines, there are a lot of question marks present due to injury issues.

The starting rotation is decimated, with all of Carlos Rodón, Luis Severino and Frankie Montas out for the start of the season and beyond. Harrison Bader will start the year on the IL. The bullpen will be missing Tommy Kahnle and Lou Trivino.

All of those injuries have opened up spots or promotions for others who haven't exactly proved themselves in pinstripes just yet. And since Yankees fans have seen far too many lackluster or undeserving performances get more run than they should have over the last few years, we're hoping for a change in philosophy on that front since the time to contend is now as everything comes into focus.

Upping the competition and keeping everybody on their toes will only foster growth for a Yankees team that badly needs to get over the hump after heartbreaking playoff performances since the 2018 season.

3 Yankees who made Opening Day roster but shouldn't have long leashes

Clarke Schmidt

Clarke Schmidt somehow went from multi-inning reliever to the No. 2 starter (on paper, he's starting the second game of the season) as the injuries mounted and forced him into the starting rotation. However, he's yet to prove himself in any role on the pitching staff dating back to 2020.

This spring, for example, in his audition for the rotation, he logged a 5.03 ERA in his six games. Across 19.2 innings, he allowed 11 earned runs on six hits, four walks and a hit batter. He looked good three times and downright bad three times, still struggling to maintain any sort of consistency.

Fans might look back on his 2022 and think the 3.12 ERA, 3.60 FIP, 1.20 WHIP and 56 strikeouts in 57.2 innings was more than suitable, but did you ever really trust he'd get off the mound unscathed when he was out there? For some bizarre reason, he was only effective when pitching innings 4-6 and was knocked around in frames 1-3 and 7-9. Whenever he gives up ground balls (.323 AVG against) or line drives (.417 AVG against), they go for hits. Only fly balls are his friend.

Overall, Schmidt hasn't been bad. But he hasn't exactly been reliable, and there's still no clear role for him on the pitching staff (unless the Yankees wanted to exclusively use him smack dab in the middle of games). To be honest, it's their fault for jerking him around like that, but Schmidt's the one throwing the ball. He needs to locate better, attack hitters better, and mix up his offerings better.

By no means should he be tossed aside if he doesn't perform, but the Yankees will need to find a better rotation option or high-leverage innings option if things don't pan out.

Estevan Florial -- No, Wait, Franchy Cordero!

After one of the worst performances of any Yankees hitter this spring, Estevan Florial seemed to be heading up north to make the Yanks' Opening Day roster after Rafael Ortega was granted his release. Why? Well, he plays good defense and he's out of options, so the Yankees figured they'd probably get what they can out of him before cutting bait.

But wait! At the buzzer, former Red Sox outfielder (technically, he plays defense) Franchy Cordero busted in on an MLB deal and stole Florial's lunch, absorbing his role on the chopping block.

All spring long, it seemed like the absolute last chance for the 25-year-old Florial, who hit a dismal .163 with a .536 OPS and 19 strikeouts in 23 games (43 at-bats) during Spring Training. Last spring? He hit .097 with a .297 OPS in 17 games (31 at-bats).

To be fair to the outfielder, the lack of consistent playing time in the bigs has no doubt affected his development, but life in New York moves fast. Hitting .185 with a .579 OPS in 29 games (63 at-bats) in the bigs won't cut it, even if it's a small sample size. Florial might just be one of those guys who dominates Triple-A and can't make the transition to the show, sadly.

When it seemed like the Yankees had chosen Florial over Rafael Ortega, who was granted his release on Tuesday, fans went into defense mode, claiming no one could fault the Yankees for going with one of their own and sinking or swimming with their internal option amid his lasy chance. Instead, it appears Florial will likely get the boot, replaced by Cordero. Nobody hits the ball harder than the ex-Red Sox slugger, who hit over .400 and was a surprise cut with the Orioles this spring. However, his defense leaves more than a little to be desired, and he's never been able to translate his insane power into in-game production consistently.

Conversely, Florial's production with the big-league roster didn't even warrant a bench spot. But can Cordero -- most famous in New York for dropping a popup against the Yankees last year -- tread water any better before Harrison Bader returns? Pardon our Franch, but he's the next in line to go if he doesn't dominate quickly.