Update, 6:10pm: More good news.
Well that’s just great. I’m sure we’ll find out more in the postgame. As a result, Luke Voit is now batting second instead of fourth. Gary Sánchez will clean up and DH.
Original post: Ugh. Yesterday, the Yankees sat center fielder Aaron Hicks due to wrist soreness and sent him for imaging. Today, we get the word that he has a torn tendon sheath in his wrist. That’s the same injury Mark Teixeira suffered in 2013, limiting him to just 15 games before surgery in July ended his season.
Now, the Teixeira comparison is a bit dramatic, but surgery is a possibility. For the time being, he’s taking medication in hope that it will resolve itself in the next few days. This injury likely explains a good deal of Hicks’s struggles at the plate this season.
For the time being, expect Brett Gardner everyday in center field. That said, someone else is going to have to play there on occasion. We saw Aaron Judge out there in recent years, though that’s certainly not an ideal place to put him in order to keep him healthy. Ultimately, this could force the Yankees hand to promote Estevan Florial, whether he’s ready or not. Florial was just bumped up to Triple-A today, by the way. As Bobby noted in our Slack, this seems partially procedural to get him into the Tier 1 status for a quick promotion, if needed.
So, Hicks is out of the lineup today, but not on the injured list yet. That leaves the lineups as follows for tonight’s series opener:
New York Yankees (20-17)
- DJ LeMahieu, 2B
- Giancarlo Stanton, DH
- Aaron Judge, RF
- Luke Voit, 1B
- Clint Frazier, LF
- Brett Gardner, CF
- Miguel Andújar, 3B
- Kyle Higashioka, C
- Tyler Wade, SS
RHP Corey Kluber
Baltimore Orioles (16-21)
- Cedric Mullins, CF
- Austin Hays, LF
- Trey Mancini, 1B
- Freddy Galvis, SS
- Ryan Mountcastle, DH
- DJ Stewart, RF
- Maikel Franco, 3B
- Pedro Severino, C
- Pat Valaika, 2B
RHP Dean Kremer
News & Notes
- Apparently, Gleyber Torres might not have to sit out 10 days after all. Should he clear protocols, he can return sooner. (Bryan Hoch)
- The team had another day of negative tests, which puts them closer to being past this COVID-19 outbreak. (Erik Boland)
- Gio Urshela sits again tonight, but his knee is doing better per Aaron Boone. He could be an option tonight. (Lindsey Adler)
- So, how about Giancarlo Stanton in the outfield? Boone isn’t committed, but it’s under consideration. (Jack Curry)
- Zack Britton will throw to hitters tomorrow for the first time since bone chip surgery. Additionally, Luis Severino is essentially at the start of spring training stage. He threw 96-97 MPH yesterday and mixed in sliders and changeups. (Pete Caldera)
Got all that? What a whirlwind. Still have a game to play, of course. It starts at 7:05pm eastern. You can watch on WPIX, Amazon Prime, or MLB Network (out-of-market only). WFAN and WADO has the radio call. Have a good night everyone.