TAMPA, Fla. — Back in 2015, Kyle Higashioka felt like his offense was going nowhere. The catcher looked at the big leagues to find someone who he could imitate to remodel his swing. The American League MVP that year was a slight infielder who showed incredible power, so Higashioka started taking part of Josh Donaldson’s swing to incorporate into his own.
Now, Donaldson is just four lockers down in the Yankees’ spring training clubhouse and Higashioka is taking advantage of it.
“I realized I couldn’t do the huge leg lift and all that stuff, but the underlying principles were the same. So mechanically speaking, he kind of speaks the same language as me,” the Yankees catcher said Tuesday after hitting his fourth home run in the last three games. “I will talk to him about the approach, it’s like where he really excels. . . There’s not many guys in the game that kind of think about the at-bats in the way that he does and about picking and choosing times to do damage and just everything. He’s just so smart mentally about that.
“It’s just such a great asset to have.”
Higashioka has hit four homers in his last 10 at-bats. His two-run shot Tuesday helped the Yankees to a 14-2 win over the Phillies at George M. Steinbrenner Field. He’s 7-for-15 with six RBI in six games overall this spring, his first that he has come in as the everyday catcher after the Yankees traded away Gary Sanchez.
Higashioka has always been highly valued by the Yankees for his catching ability. He got a break when ace Gerrit Cole made it clear that he was his preferred catcher.
And Higashioka has always shown glimpses of power. He hit 10 homers in the COVID-abbreviated 2020 season while splitting time with Sanchez.
“He’s got power and he works hard at his hitting and he doesn’t want to just be known as a great defensive catcher, but he wants to do this thing offensively, too,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “We’ve seen the power there. Even last year. . there must have been eight to 10 balls he hit to the wall last year for outs and he just missed another one. Felt like he swung the bat better than his overall numbers show.
“It’s just about being a little more consistent. He’s gotten better over the last few years in controlling the zone,” Boone said. “But that’s the next level for him especially against right handed pitching.”
CATCHING UP
Ben Rortvedt, the young catcher who the Yankees acquired in the trade that brought in Isiah Kiner-Falefa and Donaldson, has progressed from dry swings to hitting off a tee. Rortvedt, who came over with a strained right oblique, caught his second bullpen since getting shut down. The catcher is unlikely to be ready for Opening Day, but at this pace he should not be that far off.
MARVELOUS MARWIN
Marwin Gonzalez continues to make a strong case for a spot on the roster. The super utility player, who started at first base, homered again, going 3-for-4 on Tuesday with four RBI.
“He’s just putting together a lot of good at-bats right now, moving around the diamond. Seeing what we’re seeing physically from him, it makes you think that last year was just a blip, last year was a bad year,” Boone said. “That said, we’re in March, trying to try and keep that in perspective, but he’s definitely come in here and we couldn’t have expected much more.”
After hitting .264 with 14 bombs in 2019, he’s hit just .204 with 10 total homers in the past two seasons. Gonzalez was an All-Star in 2017 with the Astros, but that was also the year Houston cheated using an illegal electronic sign-stealing system and relaying it to the hitter in real time. That was his best season and it obviously raises questions, but he’s answering some that the Yankees had about him coming in.
Gonzalez, 33, is here on a minor league contract and the Yankees would have to make a move to get him on the 40-man roster.
