Jameson Taillon was preparing to take on a veteran role for the Pittsburgh Pirates this upcoming season. Taillon was ready to be a mentor for the young core of pitchers in Pittsburgh. What he did not expect was to be traded to the New York Yankees. Now he will be an essential piece of a contending team.
Taillon opened up about his expectations before he was traded to the pinstripes.
“I kind of wrapped my head around the fact that if I was with Pittsburgh this year, I would be in that mentor, help-the-young-guys role,” Taillon said. However, he is no longer on a struggling team and will now pitch for the greatest baseball franchise of all time. “Now, I’m totally switching gears. Every pitch I throw this year is going to be super meaningful,” he added.
Subscribe to our free weekly newsletter!
A week of sports news in your in-box.
We find the sports news you need to know, so you don't have to.
Aside from being on a World Series contender, the former Pirates pitcher is also now reunited with his friend and star pitcher Gerrit Cole. Cole was drafted by the Pirates and played for them from 2013-2017. The two became fast friends while playing in Pittsburgh together. Taillon said, “We used to dream of coming up through the Pirates system together and doing some great things. Unfortunately, we never completely hit our stride together.”
GET DEALS ON NEW YORK YANKEES SPRING TRAINING TICKETS HERE!
The right hander went on to compliment his new teammate, “He’s obsessed with getting better and making people around him better, he’s super passionate about that.” Taillon continued to vocalize his excitement about the opportunity. “So for me to go to an organization like the Yankees and learn from the guys around me, then having a friend and a guy I really look up to like Gerrit help me along and be a big part of what I’m doing, that’s exciting.”
The pitcher capped his final remarks about joining New York with more motivation to win. “I just feel like I’m at a point in my life and career where I’ve put in so much work to rehab this and come back and reinvent myself that I’m just so friggin’ fired up to get to pitch for a winner and get to pitch in super meaningful games,” he said.
The Yankees open up their Spring Training schedule against the Detroit Tigers on February 27.
CLICK HERE FOR NEW YORK YANKEES SPRING TRAINING TICKETS!
The Atlanta Falcons announced Tuesday that rookie quarterback Michael Penix Jr. would start the team's…
In the midst of a 3-11 season with a rookie quarterback, first-year Patriots head coach…
The New York Giants will start quarterback Drew Lock in Week 16 against the Atlanta…
Former Lakers head coach Darvin Ham spoke out about his time with his old team,…
The Kansas City Chiefs are reportedly activating wide receiver Hollywood Brown from injured reserve this…
The New York Mets signed righthanded pitcher Griffin Canning to a one-year, $4.25 million deal…