Aaron Judge could begin the season in the Minor Leagues despite entering this spring as the projected starter in right field for the New York Yankees.

Judge has been pushed by Aaron Hicks for the job in right.

"We've got to decide, is it Hicks or Judge in that situation?" Joe Girardi said. "When you look at Aaron Judge, you don't want him to sit. So if we don't think there's enough at-bats for him, that would be the thing that would keep him off the team. But that's not what I'm saying."

Judge has hit .345/.406/.569 with three homers and six RBIs in 23 Grapefruit League games. After striking out in half of his 84 Major League at-bats last year, Judge has improved his contact rate, tallying 13 whiffs in 58 spring at-bats.

"I can't really worry about that," Judge said. "If I go to Double-A, High-A, it doesn't matter. I'm going to go out there and play baseball, have fun and everything will work out the way it's supposed to."

The New York Yankees will likely bat Gary Sanchez second to begin the season.

Joe Girardi said Tuesday that he was leaning towards having Brett Gardner bat leadoff, followed by Sanchez, Greg Bird, Matt Holliday and Jacoby Ellsbury. The club wants to break up the left-handed-hitting Gardner and Ellsbury.

"It makes it harder to navigate through our lineup," Girardi said. "We feel like it's a better situation for all of us. This could very well be similar to our Opening Day lineup."

Sanchez hit 20 homers in 53 games last season after being recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in early August.

Dallas Green, who won a World Series as a manager of the Philadelphia Phillies and paved the way for lights at Wrigley Field as president of the Chicago Cubs, died Wednesday at 82.

No cause of death was announced, but Green had been suffering from kidney failure.

Green spent 62 years in baseball as a player, manager, general manager, team president, minor league director and scout.

"The game lost a great baseball man today," Phillies chairman David Montgomery said in a statement released by the team. "Dallas held many different positions in baseball, and his passion and love for the game was evident in every role he played."

The Arizona Diamondbacks are listening to offers for Nick Ahmed and the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees have been mentioned as potential destinations.

The San Diego Padres had previously been linked to Ahmed.

Brian McCann enjoyed his time with the New York Yankees, but admitted that the offseason trade that sent him to the Houston Astros was good for both parties.

"I can still catch at this level, and I can catch at a high level, too," he said. "I wasn't going to (stay and) catch once a week and DH. I still have a lot left in the tank. I feel great. When this was presented, it was a no-brainer because I went to a team filled with talent ... young talent that's going to be together for a while.

"I think it was a best-case scenario for both sides. Gary's [Sanchez] going to be there for a long time and I get to come here (to the Astros) and fill in this lineup, catch this staff."

McCann lost time to Sanchez, who was promoted for good in August and hit 20 home runs in 53 games.

"Gary put on a clinic, but he's got a great swing," McCann said. "He hits the ball to all fields. He's got pop. In my three years there, I thought Gary made strides every year. He's a mature guy. He works hard. He cares. ... You knew his time was coming."

The Chicago White Sox continue to scout members of the New York Yankees farm system for a potential trade.

New York has been linked to Chicago's Jose Quintana for a majority of the offseason.

The Yankees have some organizational depth at both first base and shortstop.

CC Sabathia found a big positive during a rocky spring training outing -- no issues with his troublesome right knee.

The Yankees left-hander lasted just two-thirds of an inning Sunday, allowing six runs and six hits in a 10-2 loss to the Braves.

"The body feels good," Sabathia said. "I was letting some (pitches) go, and I had no problems. As far as the knee, you want to get that out of the way. Make sure you can push off as hard as you can, land and be good. I wanted to accomplish that in the game and I did."

The New York Yankees are making it known that they are willing to accept trade offers for Rob Refsnyder, according to a report.

Refsnyder was seen as a potential long-term solution at second base, but the Yankees acquired Starlin Castro last offseason which made Refsnyder a utility man.

The 26-year-old was a fifth round pick in 2012.

Joe Girardi, who is entering his 10th season as manager of the New York Yankees, isn't under contract past this year.

The Yankees have only played in one playoff game the last four years, but Girardi isn't concerned about his contract status.

"To be in one place for 10 years, where my kids have basically been in the same place, it's hard to believe," said Girardi, who consistently bounced around the Major Leagues as a player.

Girardi twice before has entered the final year of his Yankees contract without an extension, ending up with his current four-year, $16 million deal in 2013.

"God is going to put me where he wants me, bottom line," he said. "What I dreamed about (as a player), it was nothing like I thought it was going to be. And it turned out to be great. What I thought I would do as a manager turned out different. I went to Florida on a three-year deal and was there one year. I never thought I would be here as quickly as I was. That's why I don't worry about it."

Bryce Harper is expected to shatter contract records when he signs his next deal and the Philadelphia Phillies, New York Yankees and Washington Nationals are the early favorites for his services.

One executive believes the Nationals are a long-shot to re-sign Harper -- “How are they going to sign him? They defer money in every contract," the executive said. However, Washington has surprised in the past by signing Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg for a combined $385 million.

"I always have hope," Mike Rizzo says about Washington's chances to keep Harper on an extension. "Who wouldn't want to have him long-term? We'd love to have him long-term. We scouted, signed and developed him. And he's been an MVP here. He's great on the club and in the clubhouse. He's a wonderful kid who's been misunderstood."

Harper will be a free agent after the 2018 season. He is a four-time All-Star in five seasons. He's one year removed from a 42-home run season with a 1.109 OPS and a 9.9 WAR.