NEW YORK – The newest single-digit Yankee is ready for the scrutiny.

Having worn No. 0 since his youth baseball days, “it’s just something I’m comfortable with,’’ said reliever Adam Ottavino, who’ll be the first Yankees player to ever wear a zero on his back.

Sure, the Brooklyn-born Ottavino can see how “there could be’’ some added expectations associated with being the first single digit Yankee since Derek Jeter’s No. 2, the last in a row of retired pinstriped numbers.

However, “realistically, I understand that any type of recognition I get from Yankees fans is going to be contingent on me pitching well,’’ Ottavino said on Friday. “I’m just going to try to focus on that…and not try to make too big of a deal about the number.’’

This week, the Yankees officially announced a three-year, $27 million contract for Ottavino, who joins possibly the game’s most potent bullpen.

"I really wanted to be a Yankee the whole time,'' Ottavino said. "This is the type of environment I want to be in, the type of stage I want to pitch on.''

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Even before he signed with the Yankees, Ottavino created a mild controversy this winter, saying he’d easily have an advantage over Babe Ruth, if the Bambino were in today’s game.

“I would strike Babe Ruth out every time,’’ Ottavino said on an MLB.com podcast, adding that he meant no disrespect to the Hall of Fame slugger. “It was just a different game’’ back then.

After those comments aired, “I was surprised that it went so viral,’’ said Ottavino. “I probably used a bad example of the point I was trying to make about the evolution of pitching in baseball history.

“Babe Ruth is a name I probably shouldn’t have used in that example.’’

Ottavino said that the flack he took was mostly good-natured, with one uncle saying he couldn’t go out in public without hearing about his nephew’s comments about the Babe.

“I meant no disrespect,’’ Ottavino said. As to the dominance of one era of pitchers over another era’s hitters, “It’s nothing that can be proven, anyway, so I found it a little funny.’’

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Living year-round in New York, Ottavino had identified the Yankees as his No. 1 choice in free agency, and was pleased that they contacted him early in the process.

Having already spoken with manager Aaron Boone, the right-handed Ottavino figures to be used in high-leverage setup situations along with lefty Zach Britton and Dellin Betances as bridges to closer Aroldis Chapman, with Chad Green and Jonathan Holder in the mix.

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Ottavino, 33, went 6-4 with a 2.43 ERA in 77 games (77.2 innings) last year for the Colorado Rockies, striking out 112 batters and walking 36.

That followed up a rough 2017 season, when he posted a 5.06 ERA in 63 games, two years removed from Tommy John surgery.

Already armed with a devastating slider, Ottavino said he’s also working on a new pitch, training again in an abandoned Upper Manhattan store.

That isolated work “allowed me to start from the ground up and fix a lot of bad habits,’’ said Ottavino. “I felt like I was in a good spot from Day One and I was able to kind of hold that momentum.’’