David Hale is back with the Yankees.
Hale pitched in one game for the Yankees in April 2018 then one game for the Twins and then was brought back by the Yankees and then pitched in Korea.
It’s been a well-traveled road for Hale who pitched in the minors for several seasons in the Braves organization and then with Atlanta in 2013 and 2014. He split time with the Rockies and their minor league affiliates in 2015 and 2016 as well as the Orioles’ Triple-A team.
He spent 2017 in the Dodgers organization before his nomadic 2018.
Hale made his 2019 Yankees debut last Tuesday and earned his first career save, pitching four innings in Baltimore.
He spoke to NY Sports Day before Monday’s game against the Padres.
NYSD: What has this last year been like for you?
DH: It’s been absolutely wild. Obviously getting up here and getting to play for the Yankees and then having a day with the Twins and coming back and finishing in a different country. It’s been crazy.
NYSD: Does that make you feel really wanted or really unwanted?
DH: I’ve said before that my wife and I say you can kind of cry about it or you can laugh about it and I think we’ve got some pretty cool stories if we just take it in stride. And it’s been fun. We’ve got to see some cool places and make some good money for our family and it’s been fun.
NYSD: Is there something that can prepare you for that kind of traveling?
DH: I don’t think. You’re obviously used to traveling in professional baseball but that was travel to the extreme.
NYSD: How different was Korea?
DH: It was very different. I had a little list on my phone of just within baseball there are like 25 things that I noticed that were just slightly different. And it’s obviously baseball, you know how to play it and everything but little things here and there that kind of ‘huh, I’m not in America right now.’
NYSD: What were some of the differences?
DH: The most notable to me were there’s two rubbers in Korea. So it’s like one and then another one. So you throw off of one. And then the other one is the pitching coach takes of the game. The manager never comes on the field. Thank God I saw somebody get pulled from a game otherwise I’d have been like, ‘What? Why are you here? What do you want me to do?’
NYSD: Was it easy to learn how to pitch with the two rubbers?
DH: It wasn’t as difficult as I expected it. But it was odd for me because I stand — my toe is the only thing on the rubber. So my toe is technically on top of the rubber. My feet was in the dirt so it was a little bit awkward at times.
NYSD: So hopefully you’re renting and not buying.
DH: Yeah. Plenty of renting.
NYSD: Well it’s nice also because you used to be at the front of the locker room now they have you between CC and Dellin.
DH: I know. I think I took their extra locker. Forgive me for that.