TAMPA, Fla. — J.C. Escarra has been dripping in confidence all spring about his chances to make the Yankees’ Opening Day roster.
That’s just who he is. There were stretches during his long and winding road to the Yankees organization where doubt did creep into Escarra’s mind, but he’s always believed in himself.
So, when Escarra was called into Aaron Boone’s office on Saturday, he was expecting good news from the Yankees’ manager about the Opening Day roster.
But when he walked in, he saw that Boone was alone in his office. If the manager was about to tell him he made the big-league roster, wouldn’t other coaches want to be there as well to celebrate?
His heart sank even further when Boone began to walk through the Yankees’ catching situation and how they have so much depth at the position.
“That’s what makes this hard,” Boone said with a straight face, as shown in a video of the meeting on the Yankees’ social media channels.
Boone took a beat and smiled.
“Nah, you’re going to the big leagues,” he said.
Escarra has been grinding for almost a decade to hear those words. He spent five years in the Orioles farm system after getting drafted in 2017. He played for a few years in indy ball, spending his offseasons in winter ball. The same player who nearly retired two years ago — when he was making only a couple hundred dollars per week, struggling to support his family — is now a few days away from suiting up in a big-league uniform for the first time. When the backup catcher has his number called, it’ll be for his long-awaited MLB debut.
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“I was just grateful to be here at first,” Escarra said in front of his locker on Sunday morning, his bags packed for a business trip up north. “Now, my dreams came true. Now is the easy part. Now it’s just play baseball in the biggest stage, so I’m excited for what’s to come.”
Escarra’s joyous personality broke through when Boone gave him the news on Saturday. When Escarra called his mom to share that he was making the team a few minutes later, the emotions truly arrived.
“The dream came true,” Escarra told his mom with tears streaming down his face.
The video has since gone viral on social media.
“You could just see the emotions,” Escarra said. “Me crying? I don’t really even cry that much. I knew she was gonna get like that. It’s just a special moment, special moment of what I’ve been through because she went through it with me as well. So it’s a whole family dream come true.”
Escarra said he’ll have at least 10 people in the stands at Yankee Stadium on Thursday for Opening Day. From his wife and parents to his brother, grandma and in-laws, it’ll be an unforgettable day for everybody involved.
He has a long list of friends and family who will attend Tuesday’s exhibition game in Miami — down the road from where he grew up in Hialeah — but a debut in the Bronx will be even more special.
“A lot of things, a lot of chess pieces had to align just for this opportunity to happen,” Escarra said. “I feel like I did everything on my part to show that I could help the team win. And thank God that the opportunity is here.”
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