Andrew McCutchen gets warm welcome from Yankees fans, goes hitless in debut
Andrew McCutchen admitted Saturday afternoon that he was nervous as he put on his pinstripes for the first time, officially starting the once-hoped-for New York Yankees phase of his career.
"I feel like a lot of baseball players want to throw on the pinstripes for who knows how long, just to say you did it," the 10-year veteran said. "It's a really surreal feeling for it to actually come to fruition.
"A day I'm not going to forget, for sure."cheap wholesale nike nfl jerseys
As he addressed reporters ahead of Saturday's game against the Detroit Tigers, the former National League MVP was capping 48 of the wildest hours of his career. He went on to appear atop the Yankees' batting order, going hitless in three at-bats of a 2-1 victory while playing right field.
"I didn't have the game that I wanted personally for my first one, but we got the win," McCutchen said. "That's what's most important."
Two days after enjoying a home off day as a member of the San Francisco Giants, he was more than 3,000 miles away from his wife and 9-month-old, hearing Yankee Stadium's famed "Bleacher Creatures" endearingly bellow his name.
After a warm ovation that preceded his first at-bat, McCutchen kicked off his Bronx tenure with a strikeout. He was frozen by Daniel Norris' 84 mph slider that swept across the strike zone. The nerves, early on at least, appeared to be present.cheap nfl nike jerseys free shipping
But McCutchen, an All-Star who carried the Pittsburgh Pirates to a trio of playoff berths in his nine seasons before getting traded to San Francisco last offseason, had no problem with the butterflies.
"Nerves are a good thing. That's the way I look at it," he said. "If you get nervous about something, it's because you care about it.
"In this situation, am I nervous? Yeah, I'm nervous. I'm on a new team, and we have an opportunity to do big things here."
McCutchen, who has never played in a World Series, is looking to make his first postseason appearance since 2015.
"I saw him for the three years that we played in September pushes, and he elevated his game to the next level," said Yankees infielder Neil Walker, who came up in the Pirates' system with McCutchen. "[He's] a guy that holds himself to a very high standard, always accountable, and he thrives in big situations and in the spotlight.
