NEW YORK (AP) —s year’s New York Yankees.“They’ve had a couple of really good teams here that have been close Wade Boggs Jersey , and the disappointment of an ending when you feel like you have a team capable of greatness I think does add a log to the fire,” he said Wednesday. “It does add a little extra kick to wanting this to get done, and I think that adds to everyone’s hunger a little bit.”New York worked out at Yankee Stadium ahead of Thursday’s opener against Baltimore. The Yankees have not reached the World Series since winning the 2009 title and haven’t finished first in the AL East since 2012.They finished eight games behind Boston in the AL East last year and were eliminated by the Red Sox in the Division Series. In 2017, they lost to Houston in Game 7 of the AL Championship Series.“In ’17 we got one game away from the World Series and last year leaving in the DS, those games sting. Both those years sting a little bit,” said right fielder Aaron Judge, who was a rookie when his team lost Game 7 to the Astros.After last year’s elimination, Judge tuned out.“Once we were out, I was done watching baseball,” he said.The 2019 version of the Bronx Bombers features many of the same players from last year’s cast, which set a big league record with 267 home runs. New York added lefty starter James Paxton, reliever Adam Ottavino, shortstop Troy Tulowitzki and infielder DJ LeMahieu Wilson Ramos Jersey , while re-signing CC Sabathia, J.A. Happ, Zack Britton and Brett Gardner.“We won 100 games last year, and we’re better than we were,” Stanton said.Stanton is starting his second season in New York following his December 2017 trade from Miami.“We got solid additions in the offseason and we’ve got a returning lineup that has an extra year under our belt together, so the more you play together the better you are,” he added. “Whether that’s the on-field, off-field chemistry, the overall dynamic is better the more you’re with the same team.”New York starts the season banged up, with Luis Severino, Sabathia, Aaron Hicks, Dellin Betances http://www.raysfanproshop.com/authentic-evan-longoria-jersey , Didi Gregorius and Jordan Montgomery sidelined. Based on what he’s seen, Boone, also starting his second season, thinks the Yankees have enough depth.“The way they compete in the little things they’re doing behind the scenes is palpable to me,” he said. “It’s something I notice.”The Orioles open up under new manager Brandon Hyde, who aims to improve a team that staggered to 115 losses last year under Buck Showalter.TANAKA TIMERight-hander Masahiro Tanaka will be making his fourth straight opening day start for New York, facing a rookie-laden Orioles lineup containing several hitters he’s never seen before. The 30-year-old is 0-2 with a 9.49 ERA in previous openers, but isn’t planning to do anything different beforehand.Aside from strategizing ways to approach the young O’s hitters, his preparation remains the same as if Thursday were just another matchup, although Tanaka did acknowledge that the tension is heightened.“Lot of eyes on this game,” he said through an interpreter.He sustained a partially-torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow back in 2014, which was never surgically repaired. It hasn’t affected him recently, and he sounded surprised when asked about the joint.“It was completely out of my mind Blake Snell Jersey ,” Tanaka said. “My elbow’s fine. I’m ready going into the season.”Fellow righty Andrew Cashner is scheduled to start for Baltimore in place of Alex Cobb, who strained a groin in his last spring training appearance.Greg Bird and Luke Voit are expected to be in Thursday’s lineup for New York. The duo had been competing for the first base job throughout spring training, but both made the opening-day roster due to injuries as well as solid performances over the past month.STANTONBoone thinks Stanton will be more relaxed. Stanton hit .266 with 38 home runs, 100 RBIs and a career-high 211 strikeouts during his first year in pinstripes. Stanton had 59 homers and 132 RBIs in his final season with Miami, when he won the NL MVP.“He’s a worker. He gets under the hood. He studies, he really studies pitchers,” Boone said. “He does really well the more he sees somebody, more so than most guys, so I think he’s able to process information when he gains experience against a guy.”Stanton appreciates being noticed for his work ethic.“It’s part of my DNA, I guess,” he said.TRAINER’S ROOMSeveral players dealing with various maladies remained in Tampa for injury rehabilitation. Hicks (stiff lower back) ran on a treadmill and is continuing to do core work. He has not started baseball activities. … Severino (right rotator cuff inflammation) threw from 120 feet on Tuesday, then had Wednesday off. … Betances (right shoulder impingement) is expected to throw off a mound in a side session this weekend. WASHINGTON — The Washington Nationals were expected to be in the midst of a pennant race as August wound down. Instead it is the Milwaukee Brewers who are in the running for a playoff spot.More Brewers coverageBrewers Final Pitch: Chacin dominates mound in Game 3 of NLCSChacin, Brewers blank Dodgers to take 2-1 lead in NLCSDespite struggles Rob Refsnyder Jersey , No. 23 Badgers still have hope in Big TenStrong winds could be factor for Brewers, Dodgers in NLCS Game 3Photos of the Week: 10/7/18 – 10/13/18Milwaukee comes to Washington for three games beginning Friday after beating the Cincinnati Reds for the second straight day on Thursday.The Brewers (75-60) got a Lorenzo Cain homer in the 11th inning for a 2-1 win that left them a half-game behind the St. Louis Cardinals for the top wild-card spot in the National League. Milwaukee is five games behind first-place Chicago in the National League Central.Thursday’s win followed Milwaukee’s 13-12 victory in a 10-inning slugfest on Wednesday night.“I think the offense looked tired,” Brewers manager Craig Counsell told mlb.com after Thursday’s win, “but you grind through it and you play good defense. We made pitches and Lo Cain got the big hit.”Washington (67-67) begins a 10-game homestand against NL Central entries Milwaukee, St. Louis and Chicago while trying to remain in the playoff hunt coming off a 3-3 road trip. The Nationals are 7 1/2 games behind the first-place Braves in the NL East and nearly as far back in the wild-card race with four teams ahead of them for the No. 2 spot.Brewers right-hander Jhoulys Chacin (13-5, 3.61 ERA) opposes right-hander Tanner Roark (8-13, 3.95) in Friday’s opener.Roark has been a different pitcher since the All-Star break, stepping up when the Nationals needed someone to back up ace Max Scherzer. Roark is 5-1 with a 1.61 ERA in his last seven starts. During that stretch, he has struck out 37 batters and walked five.“You really just feel unhittable,” a grinning Roark recently told the Washington Post. “You feel like each pitch that you’re about to throw is untouchable, and that’s what you want as a pitcher.”He started that streak in Milwaukee when he blanked the Brewers for eight innings in a July 25 win. Roark struck out 11 and walked only one.Last time out he was an unlucky loser against the Mets, allowing one run and four hits in six innings of a 3-0 Mets win.Roark entered the All-Star break 3-12 — winless since June 6 — with a 4.87 ERA.“It’s been awesome,” Nationals manager Dave Martinez told the Post regarding Roark’s sharp turnaround. “Every time he goes out there we have a chance to win ballgames.”Roark is 4-1 with a 2.23 ERA in seven appearances (six starts) in his career versus the Brewers.Milwaukee’s Christian Yelich is 9-for-36 (.250) against Roark. Jonathan Schoop is 2-for-4 and both hits are homers.Chacin has also enjoyed a strong August. After allowing eight earned runs to the Dodgers on Aug. 2 http://www.raysfanproshop.com/authentic-evan-longoria-jersey , he has surrendered just six earned runs while going 3-1 over his last four starts.“We talked in spring training that once Yelich and Cain came aboard, we kind of forgot about Chac铆n, and how important he can be,” Counsell told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “He’s ended up being really important.”The Brewers are 19-9 in games Chacin has started. He’s coming off a loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates in which he gave up three earned runs in six innings.Chacin beat the Nationals on July 23. He pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowing a run and two hits while striking out nine without a walk. In his career, he’s 4-2 with a 3.06 ERA in nine starts against Washington.Anthony Rendon is 4-for-14 (.286) versus Chacin, and Adam Eaton is 3-or-11 (.273) and Bryce Harper 0-for-6.