How Billy McKinney's forcing Yankees to keep him around

TAMPA -- Yankees still in major-league camp this time of spring typically have at least outside shots of making the Opening Day roster.

Billy McKinney doesn't. He probably won't even begin at Triple-A. But the former top prospect has turned his name into one of the few manager Joe Girardi will search for while scanning his morning minor-league reports this season.

"Swung the bat great," Girardi said of McKinney, who hit his third homer of the spring in Saturday's 5-4 loss to the Orioles at George M. Steinbrenner Field.

"Even his outs are hard. He's taken advantage of his situation where he's come to camp because of a couple of injuries and swung it extremely well. I'm excited to follow him…