When the Yankees open up spring training in Tampa, Fla. in Febuary, manager Aaron Boone expects to have Miguel Andujar at full capacity.

"[Andujar] is doing really well,'' Boone said Friday. "I expect him to be ready to go for spring training.''

Boone made an offseason trip to the "office" Friday, handling duties for the opening coin toss of the Pinstripe Bowl, played at Yankee Stadium.

When he and the Yankees return there following the end of spring training, they'll hope to have settled an intriguing position battle at third base between Andujar and Gio Urshela.

Urshela, of course, was expected to be nothing more than a role player until Andujar's injury troubles limited him to just 12 games in 2019. All Urshela did in his absence was slash .314/.355/.534 with 21 home runs and 74 RBI.

That seems to have done enough to give Urshela the chance to keep the starting job.

"You can't deny how great Gio played last year," general manager Brian Cashman said in November. "I wouldn't be honest if I didn't tell you going into spring training he would have the leg up."

But Andujar's talent is undeniable. Coming off a rookie year that saw him finish second in Rookie of the Year voting with a .297/.328/.527 slash line, 27 home runs and 92 RBI, Andujar was expected to have a massive year in 2019, only to see it derailed by injury.

While Urshela's season was far better than could be expected, he slashed .207/.258/.397 in September and finished the postseason 3-for-12 with just one extra-base hit.

With Andujar expected to be back at full strength, the Yankees certainly have quite the contingency plan should Urshela be unable to recapture the success he had throughout most of 2019. It's not a bad problem to have.

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