Cold, new conditioning program possible reasons for Yanks' injuries--NY Times

"It is impossible to know the precise reason for all the injuries. But one factor for the Yankees is their new strength and conditioning program.

General Manager Brian Cashman reworked the staff this year, letting Jeff Mangold go, hiring Marty Miller to the newly created position of director of performance enhancement and promoting Dana Cavalea to be Miller’s assistant.

• (Marty)Miller and (Dana)Cavalea do not speak to reporters, and Cashman would not detail what is different about their program. But players have privately described it as more intense, and some have opted out of it.

“You always have to look at things on the larger scale,” Cashman said. “It would be too early to look at that, because it’s too small of a sample. We’re trying some different things, but I have a feeling it has more to do with the weather than anything else.”

Cashman said he did not think the program was vastly different and added that several players have personal trainers and would not participate in any type of team-directed conditioning program."

• From NY Times article by Tyler Kepner, 4/10/07, "Cold Possibly a Factor in Key Leg Injuries in the Bronx" (requires cookies)

I'm glad someone had the brains to tell the conditioning guys not to give interviews. But I'm curious about whether the new system is at fault.

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