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TAMPA Rusney Castillo Jersey , Fla. (AP) — Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner thinks New York has a championship-caliber team as it heads into Thursday’s opener against Baltimore.“We’re excited,” Steinbrenner said Tuesday after watching CC Sabathia pitch in a minor league game. “We’re as good as anybody. The team is going to do everything they can to win this thing. I believe they’re going to play up to their potential.”Steinbrenner thinks the Yankees have enough depth to overcome injuries to Sabathia, Luis Severino, Dellin Betances, Didi Gregorius, Aaron Hicks, and Jordan Montgomery.“I’d like to be more healthy, but the good news is none of the injuries are significant and the guys are going to be back,” Steinbrenner said.New York went 100-62 last season for its best record since 2009, yet finished eight games back of the AL East champion Boston Red Sox, who won the World Series for the fourth time in 15 seasons.Last year’s Yankees, led by Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton set a major league record with 267 homers, three more than the 1997 Seattle Mariners.The Yankees focused on pitching during the offseason, adding Adam Ottavino and James Paxton Brock Holt Jersey , and re-signing Sabathia, Zack Britton, and J.A. Happ.Youngsters Domingo German and Jonathan Loaisiga will fill two spots in the rotation in the opening weeks.“Our pitching from top to bottom is still very good,” Steinbrenner said of Yankees’ minor league system. “Charleston may have the best rotation of all. We’re strong.”Sabathia made his second start since undergoing a heart procedure in December. He allowed one run, two hits and struck out three over three innings in a Triple-A game against Philadelphia minor leaguers. He also made a nice defensive play, coming forward off the mound to field a grounder and then throwing the batter out at first base.“I felt great,” Sabathia said after throwing 28 of 40 pitches for strikes. “Just try to build up the next start.”Sabathia, scheduled to pitch again on Monday, will remain in Florida to work out and will not be at Yankee Stadium for Thursday’s opener. He plans to retire after the season.“Opening day is not that special, I’d rather be there for the World Series,” a smiling Sabathia said.When asked if he was going to watch the opener on TV, Sabathia jokingly said he had to see first if he had “some Netflix shows” to watch.The 38-year old, who is expected to miss his first two of three regular-season starts, will be on the opening day roster while serving a five-game suspension for hitting the Tampa Bay Rays’ Jesus Sucre with a pitch in his final outing last season.NOTES: German pitched in a Double-A game. … OF Clint Frazier http://www.redsoxproshops.com/authentic-dustin-pedroia-jersey , coming back from a concussion-wrecked season, played center field in the Triple-A game. Hicks, the starting center fielder, will begin the season on the injured list with a lower back ailment. LOS ANGELES — While the long ball is getting all the attention for the Los Angeles Dodgers of late, they have also used an old reliable to get them in position to grab their sixth consecutive National League West title.Before the current series against the San Diego Padres began, Dodgers starters had a 3.06 ERA since the All-Star break, the best mark in the major leagues. That number had come in 57 starts and 332 innings.Then came a stumble Friday from right-hander Ross Stripling and the Dodgers fell 5-3 to the last-place Padres. Los Angeles’ lead in the National League West fell to 1 1/2 games with just over a week remaining in the season. Stripling lasted just 3 1/3 innings.Article continues below ...Carrying those Dodgers pitching expectations into Saturday’s game against the Padres is left-hander Rich Hill (9-5, 4.02 ERA), who has done his part during the team’s second-half pitching success. Hill is 7-1 since the All-Star break, posting a 3.55 ERA. In his 11 second-half starts, the Dodgers have gone 8-3.The Dodgers have not always had all aspects of their game firing at once until the last two weeks. The starting pitchers, though, had long since set an example for the rest of the team.The intensity has ramped up further as a Dodgers team that has played three National League Championship Series and one World Series over the last five years has that October look once again.“These are playoff games,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I think you can see the intent on every single pitch. We smell the finish line of the regular season. There’s a lot of sacrifice going on. The preparation hasn’t wavered. The bottom line is we have very good players.”That sounds good David Price Jersey , but the Dodgers are actually 1-3 in their last four games against last-place teams. They lost two of three to the Cincinnati Reds on their most recent road trip.The Padres would like to see rookie right-hander Jacob Nix (2-3, 5.75) rise to the occasion amid all that Dodger Stadium energy Saturday, and against an opposing veteran starter who has been a key member in the Dodgers’ last three playoff runs.Complicating matters for Nix is a sore hip that might need surgery in the offseason, although the right-hander is doing everything he can to avoid going down that route. He will not only be focused on the Dodgers on Saturday, but will have to be in lock step with his mechanics as well.“I don’t want to be compensating for something down the chain,” Nix said, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.Nix has just seven career starts, all since Aug. 10. His best outing came Aug. 28 against the Seattle Mariners, when he gave up just one run over 8 1/3 innings, but he has given up 14 earned runs in the three starts since then (6.19 ERA).Nix has never faced the Dodgers. Hill has two starts against the Padres this year, going 1-1 with a 2.77 ERA over 13 innings. He is 5-4 lifetime against San Diego with a 3.09 ERA over 10 starts.