Didi Gregorius survived spring training playing in Derek Jeter's shadow.
Now comes the real test.
Gregorius will make his Yankees debut as the team's new shortstop on Monday when the team opens its season against the Blue Jays in The Bronx.
"I don't feel pressure," said Gregorius, who is healthy after he sprained his left wrist a week ago Saturday. "I'm just looking forward to the opportunity. It's not about me replacing Jeter. It's about me playing baseball and playing well and being myself."
So far, he's been fine and hasn't looked overwhelmed by the task.
Still, plenty of questions will remain until Gregorius proves he can hit — especially against lefties — because he has struggled for much of his brief time in the majors with the Reds and Diamondbacks.
A year ago at this time, Gregorius was shipped to Triple-A Reno by Arizona after losing a spring battle with Chris Owings despite playing 103 games with Arizona in 2013, mostly at shortstop.
Diamondbacks' officials said he dealt with the situation well, and he was recalled in June and spent the rest of the season in the majors. The Yankees hope he's ready to take the next step.
Joe Girardi believes those tough times actually could benefit Gregorius in his new role.
"I think he's been through some ups and downs in his career," the manager said of the 25-year-old. "He's probably had some frustration. He's had to deal with it before."
Another thing Gregorius has on his side, according to Girardi, is the fact Jeter won't be playing on a different team, with fans able to look at him from afar.
"I always think it's easier when you come in when someone retires as opposed to being traded or maybe not re-signed because no matter what type of year Didi has — and I think he's going to have a good year — it's not like you're looking at what Derek is doing somewhere else," Girardi said. "Derek's either hitting 1.000 or zero, however you want to call it this year."
There aren't any concerns about Gregorius' glove, but until he shows he can hit on a consistent basis, questions about his bat will remain.
A solid spring helped, as Gregorius went 13-for-48 with five doubles and two triples and an OPS of .766, but that won't mean much when he's in the lineup Monday.
Still, it made life a bit easier heading into the season — as did some other issues that were perhaps even more concerning than who would step in for Jeter.
"It probably started that way because of Alex [Rodriguez] coming back to camp," Girardi said. "Then I think a lot of focus was put on [Masahiro] Tanaka and CC [Sabathia] and Alex during our camp."
Gregorius played a role in that, as well.
"I also think Didi played well, [so] you weren't saying 'What are we going to get?' " Girardi said. "I think if he wasn't playing well, he wouldn't have flown under the radar. … I think he's got the right type of personality to handle this."
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