When Didi Gregorius was growing up on Curaçao, his friends used to laugh at how, no matter how steamy the weather was on the Caribbean island, Gregorius always showed up to play ball in a long-sleeve shirt.
It is a habit that still persists. Whether he’s deep in the humid heart of Texas in July or sweltering in Kansas City in August, Gregorius takes his position at shortstop for the Yankees wearing long sleeves.
On Tuesday, Gregorius found himself in conditions for which he was appropriately equipped. With those long sleeves — and a booming bat — nobody looked more comfortable in the drizzling, dank and bone-chilling weather than Gregorius, who belted two home runs and drove in a career-high eight runs in the Yankees’ 11-4 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays.