A-Rod: Yankees' lineup could be 'record-breaking'

The New York Yankees will field one of the most fearsome lineups in recent memory on Opening Day, and Alex Rodriguez is a believer.

"It has an opportunity to be record-breaking and put up numbers we have not seen in a really long time," Rodriguez told Erik Boland of Newsday. "I can't remember (seeing) this type of lineup one to nine in a really long time."

Rodriguez, himself one of the most feared hitters in MLB history, was a part of some daunting batting lineups with the Yankees that included Robinson Cano, Derek Jeter, Mark Teixeira, Nick Swisher, and Curtis Granderson. Led by 43 homers from Granderson and 33 by Cano, they set a franchise record by going yard 245 times in 2012.

Aside from acquiring the National League MVP and reigning home-run king in Giancarlo Stanton, the 2018 Yankees will feature a lineup with homegrown stars like 2017 AL Rookie of the Year Aaron Judge, Gary Sanchez, and Greg Bird. Between those four and shortstop Didi Gregorius, New York's top five hitters are projected to hit 166 home runs, according to FanGraphs. The top-five combination of Granderson, Cano, Swisher, Teixeira, and A-Rod combined for 142 home runs in 2012.

A-Rod, who now works as a special adviser to general manager Brian Cashman, took on a role with ESPN this offseason as an analyst on the broadcast of Sunday Night Baseball - a role incidentally vacated by new Yankees manager Aaron Boone.