If the Yankees’ winning streak continues against the Rays, the division will be over with 35 games left to play.
The Yankees don’t lose at home and they certainly don’t lose to the Red Sox. After sweeping the Red Sox in a three-game series a couple of weeks ago at Yankee Stadium, the Yankees swept them again, this time in a four-game series. The Yankees have now won 10 straight against the Red Sox for the first time since 1952-53.
With the four wins over the Red Sox, the Yankees have now won six straight and are 16-6 with a three-game lead in the loss column over the Rays. If the Yankees’ winning streak continues through the three-game series against the Rays beginning on Tuesday, the division will be over with 35 games left to play.
Despite extra rest, scheduled off days and load management, the Yankees’ everyday players are still getting hurt and still being placed on the injured list.
The 2019 Yankees put more players on the injured list than any team in any season in the history of baseball. Not only did the 2019 Yankees never play a single game with what was expected to be their everyday lineup, the team’s injuries were usually mishandled, misdiagnosed and mistreated.
2020 hasn’t been any different. Despite extra rest, scheduled off days and load management, the Yankees’ everyday players are still getting hurt and still being placed on the injured list. This past week, the Yankees put Giancarlo Stanton (hamstring strain), Aaron Judge (calf strain) and DJ LeMahieu (sprained left thumb) all on the IL. Aside from Stanton’s injury (he hasn’t been allowed to play the outfield because he’s prone to injuries, and yet he got hurt running the bases as the designated hitter), the injuries to Judge and LeMahieu were oddly dealt with in a way that has become the norm for the Yankees.
Last August, I wrote Yankees Continue to Mishandle Injuries. A year later, they’re still operating in the same way. Here’s how badly they have screwed up nearly every injury dating back to Judge’s fractured wrist on a hit by pitch in July 2018.
Didi Gregorius Back in Game 2 of the 2018 ALDS, Ian Kinsler hit a ball off the Green Monster that Andrew McCutchen played as if he had no basic knowledge or understanding of geometry. This forced Didi Gregorius to go into the outfield to retrieve the ball and throw it back in. It was on this throw that Gregorius’s elbow popped. But after his elbow popped, he played the last two-and-a-half innings of Game 2, all of Game 3 and all of Game 4. It wasn’t until Boone’s 2018 end-of-the-season press conference that the information that the team’s starting shortstop would miss part of next season to undergo Tommy John surgery was announced, and it wasn’t until Yankees public relations man Jason Zillo, not Boone, announced it. Gregorius didn’t return to the Yankees until June 7, 2019.
Number 31, Aaron Hicks, Number 31 Aaron Hicks hurt his back on Feb. 27, 2019 riding the team bus from Tampa to Lakeland for a spring training game. Two days later (March 1), during batting practice, the discomfort was still there, so he was shut down. Ten days later (March 11), he had a cortisone shot. Six days later (March 17), due to the still-existing pain, he had a second cortisone shot. Despite not having played in nearly three weeks and having two cortisone shots, Boone said “I think he physically probably will be ready [for Opening Day]. We don’t think it’s going to be a long time for Hicks.” He wasn’t ready for Opening Day.
It was reported that Hicks would return for the second series and fourth game of the season on April 1 against the Tigers. He didn’t return and four days later (April 5), Boone said, “I believe he is starting baseball activities” and also said, “I don’t think it will be six weeks” until he returns. Hicks returned six weeks later for the 42nd game of the season on May 15.
The last regular-season game Hicks played in 2019 was on Aug. 3. That’s because his elbow popped and would require Tommy John surgery. Somehow, in early October, Hicks still hadn’t undergone surgery, so he rejoined the Yankees for the ALCS. After the series, Hicks finally underwent Tommy John surgery, which would have kept him out for the first half of 2020, if the season had started on time.
Number 40, Luis Severino, Number 40 On March 5, 2019, Luis Severino felt shoulder discomfort while warming up before a spring training start. An MRI showed inflammation in his rotator cuff, and Boone said he would be shut down for two weeks, and it would be “highly unlikely” he would be ready for Opening Day.
On April 8, Severino still didn’t feel well enough to throw off a mound, despite having increased his rehab to throwing from 130 feet, and he was sent to New York to be evaluated. Two days later (April 10), it was announced he had a Grade 2 lat strain which would shut him down for at least six weeks. Severino said he first experienced lat pain the same day as the rotator cuff pain, but the Yankees claimed to be unaware of it.
In June, Severino had progressed to nearly returning to throw off a mound, but he felt soreness near his injured lat. Severino was shut down for another week and an MRI revealed the injury had only 90 percent healed. Brian Cashman said, “Cleary, in hindsight, he should have never started his throwing program,” acknowledging Severino should have received an MRI prior to starting his throwing program to be sure the injury was completely healed.
Severino made three regular-season starts in 2019 and another two in the postseason. During the ALCS, he complained of elbow pain, but was still allowed to prepare to start Game 7 of the ALCS, which wasn’t played. His elbow complaint went untreated in October, November, December, January and most of February until he was diagnosed with a tear requiring Tommy John surgery. Rather than be treated in October and miss the 2020 season, Severino would now miss the 2020 season and part of 2021 as well.
Dellin Betances Dellin Betances missed the beginning of 2019 spring training for the birth of his child. His decreased velocity in Tampa seemed like it was a result of not building his arm strength yet, but when the velocity failed to come back, an MRI on March 19 revealed a shoulder impingement. He would be shut down for a few days and begin a cycle of anti-inflammatories.
During a simulated game on April 12, Betances didn’t feel right and an MRI revealed a pre-existing bone spur. Betances received another cortisone shot the following day (April 13) and would be shut down for six to seven weeks. Cashman admitted the bone spur was discovered while giving Betances a physical in 2006, but that Betances was never made aware of the condition by the Yankees.
Number 41, Miguel Andujar, 41 Miguel Andujar injured his shoulder diving into third base in the third game of the 2019 season and it was announced he had a partial tear of his right labrum. Andujar and the Yankee determined the third baseman would be able to rehab the injury rather than undergo season-ending shoulder surgery.
Andujar returned to the lineup on May 4, just over a month after injuring his shoulder, but went 3-for-34 with no extra-base hits, and on May 13, he was placed back on the injured list. On May 15, it was announced Andujar would have season-ending surgery.
Number 27, Giancarlo Stanton, Number 27 Giancarlo Stanton went on the injured list on April 1, 2019 with a biceps strain. The biceps strain, which shut him down, became a shoulder strain, which shut him down, and that became a calf strain, which also shut him down. Boone said, “Hopefully we have back at some point this month.”
Stanton finally returned on June 18 and played in five games with two personal off days during the five days for extra rest. In the sixth game of his return, his hand was stepped on while sliding and he was removed from the game in what seemed to be a hand injury. It was later announced Stanton was removed from the game due to a sprained right knee and Cashman said he wouldn’t return until August. He didn’t return until Sept. 18.
Number 24, Gary Sanchez, Number 24 Gary Sanchez complained of leg tightness after catching the game in Houston on April 8, 2019. Boone put him in the lineup as the designated hitter the following night. In the series finale, on a Wednesday, Sanchez wasn’t in the starting lineup. “With the off day [Thursday] and having a lot of guys down it is probably best to try and grab a couple days here while we can,” Boone said about sitting Sanchez. But in the eighth inning, Boone used Sanchez as a pinch hitter anyway. “Just trying to be proactive,” Boone said. “I want to make sure we are being smart about this and do all we can to keep him healthy. Making sure this doesn’t become an issue.”
Following the off day after the Astros series, the Yankees placed Sanchez on the injured list with a left calf strain.
Number 77, Clint Frazier, Number 77 On April 22, 2019, Clint Frazier slid awkwardly into second base on a pickoff attempt, rolling his ankle. Frazier grabbed his ankle and then hopped around near the base as Boone and Steve Donahue ran out of the dugout. Frazier was able to persuade Boone and Donahue to let him remain in the game, and after his ankle was tightly wrapped, he stayed in for the final innings, playing left field for the 12th, 13th and 14th innings.
Frazier wasn’t in the lineup the following day, and Boone said it was precautionary and the team didn’t believe it was “too serious”. The next day (April 24), Frazier was placed on the injured list after an MRI revealed a partial tear in his left ankle.
Number 25, Gleyber Torres, Number 25 When any Yankee experiences the most minor of injuries, it’s rare they’re back in the lineup the next day. When a Yankee has to be pulled from a game and taken to the hospital, it’s a little more than a jammed finger or stubbed toe, but apparently not for Gleyber Torres, the franchise’s most important long-term everyday player. After needing to go the hospital for a “core issue” on a Sunday night, Torres was back in the lineup on Monday night. Torres went 0-for-5 on Monday and was 0-for-2 on Tuesday before he was moved from the game for further evaluation. How was the Yankees’ 22-year-old star middle infielder allowed to return to the lineup so quickly after what seemed at the time like a serious issue? (That question is rhetorical since there’s no answer.) It was at least serious enough that he went to the hospital.
Number 45, Luke Voit, Number 45 Luke Voit came up injured after successfully busting his way to second for a hard-earned double to lead off the fifth inning in the first game in London on June 29, 2019. After the team’s return to New York, Voit was placed on the injured list with an abdominal strain on July 2. He returned to the lineup on July 13, but a couple weeks later, on July 31, he was back on the injured list with a sports hernia. Boone said, “He was having a hard time getting loose before the game.”
Voit’s option were to try to rehab the injury or elect for surgery, which would keep him out for six weeks, but with each day without an answer, a return in time for the postseason would become more bleak. “Over the next 24 hours, we’ll determine a course of action,” Boone said on July 31, the day of the injury. As of Aug. 6, the decision for rehab or surgery was still undecided. The surgery ended up not happening and Voit returned on Aug. 30 and hit .200/.319/.338 in 24 games to finish the season. He was left off the postseason roster and eventually had abdominal surgery in the offseason.
Number 65, James Paxton, Number 65 In his final start of the 2019 regular season, James Paxton was removed after an inning with back pain. Paxton pitched in the postseason and then nothing was done about his back until Feb. 5, 2020 when he underwent microscopic lumbar discectomy, which would have landed him on the IL to begin the 2020 season, if it had started on time.
Number 99, Aaron Judge, Number 99 The Yankees’ injury problems really started at the end of July in 2018 when Judge got hit by a pitch, fracturing his wrist. The Yankees continually botched the timetable for his return and Judge ended up missing two months and barely returned before the end of the regular season. Ever since then, you can count on one hand how many injuries the Yankees have properly diagnosed and correctly handled and how many rehab timetables were accurate, and you wouldn’t even need all your fingers on the one hand to count them.
Earlier this year, Judge was shut down on the first actual day of spring training as if he were a disgusting, unsanitary dive bar John Taffer just walked into. “Just dealing with some crankiness,” Boone said rather nonchalantly about Judge as if he could be cured with some Tylenol and a couple days off. “I guess a little soreness in shoulder.” That wasn’t the end of Boone’s optimistic injury update. “I feel like it’s a pretty minor thing,” Boone said. “Probably in the next couple days, start ramping him back up.”
Eventually, on March 20, it was announced that Judge had a fractured rib and a collapsed lung. Apparently, it wasn’t such a “minor thing” as Boone had suggested. The injury occured in September 2019 and went undiagnosed until March 2020.
Last Tuesday, Judge hit his league-leading ninth home run in the fifth inning. In the sixth inning, Judge was removed from the game for Mike Tauchman. Had Aaron Boone removed Judge from the game because it was an eight-run game even though it was from over? Was Judge hurt? This was less likely of an answer since Judge had just hit a home run, and unless he got hurt running the bases following a home run (something I could see Stanton doing), how had he gotten hurt between the home run and being removed from the game? Judge was seen leaning up against the railing in the dugout and laughing and smiling with his teammates after he was removed from the game, so I wasn’t worried. After the game, Boone distinguished my fears when he said, “Coming off of four days on the turf and with a little bit of of leverage there, just trying to be smart with these guys. Judgie hasn’t really had that day down. I gave him the DH day and I just want to make sure we’re being smart with everyone.” The next day, on Wednesday, it became known that Boone wasn’t trying to be “smart” about Judge, instead he was lying about him and the Yankees placed Judge on the injured list, despite him saying he feels 100 percent healthy.
Number 26, DJ LeMahieu, Number 26 When DJ LeMahieu released the bat after an awkward swing on Saturday night, my heart dropped. I knew the Yankees’ 2019 MVP candidate who desperately tried to win the ALCS with only the help of Torres was hurt. LeMahieu had a look of concern on his face that matched mine as he tried to shake out his left hand and shake out the pain.
After being evaluated, LeMahieu was allowed to stay in the game for his at-bat which resulted in a ground out. Then he was allowed to play the field. Eventually, he was removed from the game for Tyler Wade. Following the game, it was announced that LeMahieu had sprained his left thumb, the same injury he had endured with Colorado in 2018. The Yankees placed him on the injured list (their third player placed on it in a week), but that wasn’t the end for the diagnosis as it Boone would eventually announce LeMahieu was going to go for a second opinion on his thumb to make sure he didn’t need surgery. SURGERY? Somehow LeMahieu went from an awkward swing in which he was evaluated and allowed to finish his at-bat and play the field to possibly needing surgery.
In the second half of the 2019, Hal Steinbrenner claimed the team began studying its injuries in May 2019.
“We’ll wait until all the data is in and at the end of the year, if we need to make changes in the procedures and the ways we do things, then we’re going to do that,” Steinbrenner said. “We’re looking at everything intensely, and any time we have a year like this, we’re going to do that.”
Cashman said he had conducted an investigation into the team’s handling of injuries this season.
“I’ve gone through the process and I’ll leave it at that,” Cashman said on June 30, 2019. “We always evaluate our process, and if there are problems and mistakes made by us, then they’re dealt with.”
If the team started studying their injury problem in May 2019, like Streinbrenner said, and Cashman had already conducted his injury investigation by the end of June 2019, and the team supposedly revamped their medical and training staff, then why do injuries continue to be dealt with the same way?
Aaron Boone might have outright lied as Yankees manager to the fans and media.
Aaron Boone might have outright lied as Yankees manager to the fans and the media when he removed Aaron Judge from Tuesday’s game. If he did, it’s not a great look for a manager in New York. If he didn’t, then Aaron Judge seemingly can’t stay healthy once again. Either way, it’s bad for the Yankees.
The Yankees are off on Thursday before having the chance to further embarrass the Red Sox this season. But the Yankees might have to do so without their most important player as Aaron Judge is once again hurt.
The Yankees won back-to-back games against the Braves and are off on Thursday before having the chance to further embarrass the Red Sox this season. But the Yankees might have to do so without their most important player as Aaron Judge is once again hurt.
Last season, I wrote the Off Day Dreaming blogs on every off day, but this season there aren’t many off days. There aren’t many games. So instead, I have decided to use the Off Day Dreaming format following each series. Yankees Thoughts will be posted after each series this season.
Here are 10 thoughts on the Yankees.
1. Yes, the Yankees won two games in a row, but let’s start with the most important story: Aaron Judge. On Tuesday night, Judge hit his league-leading ninth home run in the fifth inning and the Yankees had an 8-0 lead after five. In the sixth inning, Judge was removed from the game for Mike Tauchman. Had Aaron Boone removed Judge from the game because it was a “blowout” even though it wasn’t? That was the most likely answer, but still a ridiculous answer since the game was far from over at the time and would be far from over as the Braves would eventually bring the tying run to the plate. Was Judge hurt? This was less likely of an answer since Judge had just hit a home run, and unless he got hurt running the bases following a home run (something I could see Giancarlo Stanton doing), how had he gotten hurt between the home run and being removed from the game? Judge was seen leaning up against the railing in the dugout and laughing and smiling with his teammates after he was removed from the game, so I wasn’t worried. If he had gotten hurt in the game, he would have been in the clubhouse getting treatment or somewhere other than the dugout. After the game, Boone distinguished my fears when he said, “Coming off of four days on the turf and with a little bit of of leverage there, just trying to be smart with these guys. Judgie hasn’t really had that day down. I gave him the DH day and I just want to make sure we’re being smart with everyone.” As expected, Judge being removed from the game was just Boone being an idiot and Judge wasn’t hurt. The amount of times Boone has held a player out and cited himself for “being smart” is comical given how many players eventually do get hurt after he praises himself for being “smart about giving unnecessary days off. The next day, on Wednesday, it became known that Boone wasn’t trying to be “smart” about Judge, instead he was lying about him.
2. On Wednesday, when the lineup came out, Judge’s name wasn’t listed. Boone was asked about Judge not being in the lineup and said, “It’s kind of all over the lower body where he’s dealing with some rigor. The hips and down into the hamstrings and calves. I think it’s a result of the four games’ pounding in three days down in Tampa.” So now Judge was hurt and Boone had lied on Tuesday, and Boone wasn’t trying to be “smart” about Judge when he removed him from the game. Joe Girardi spent his first season as Yankees manager lying to the media and then broke down on the final day of the season because of the way he handled the media and injuries all season. If Judge isn’t actually hurt and can play on Friday then what happened the last two days will be worse for Boone than lying. It would mean Judge can’t handle playing four games and 32 innings over three days (since two of the games were seven innings). It would mean he needs even more time off than he has received and he just had a game off last week in Philadelphia (he pinch hit late in the game), and the Yankees have had an abundance of days off through the first 18 games of the season, including having had Monday off before the Braves series and Thursday off after the Braves series. Maybe the injury really is nothing and Judge will play on Friday, but when it comes to the Yankees’ handling of injuries, you always have to expect the worst.
3. The Yankees’ handling of their injuries since Judge went down with a fractured wrist in July 2018 has been nothing short of ridiculous. The amount of times a Yankees player has been properly evaluated or correctly diagnosed or has returned from injury within the team’s original timetable can be counted on one hand, and you might not even need all your fingers on that one hand to do the counting. Judge hasn’t exactly been the most healthy player in his three-plus seasons as a major leaguer. He was shut down for the final two weeks of the 2016 season with an oblique injury. In 2017, he battled a second-half shoulder injury which cost him the AL MVP (along with Jose Altuve and his teammates knowing which pitches were coming). He missed one third of the season in 2018 after getting drilled by a pitch on his wrist, which certainly was a freak injury, and then he missed two months last season after suffering another oblique injury. Judge missed about 25 percent of the last three seasons due to injury and if the 2020 season had started on time, he wouldn’t have been available until the shortened version of the 2020 season began. Judge is the most important player on the Yankees and not having him for part of any season is an issue, especially in a shortened season. If any injury were to linger or keep him out for significant time this season, winning the division would be in jeopardy and winning the postseason would be extremely hard.
4. Welcome back, Clint Frazier! I have long wanted Frazier to get a chance to be an everyday player on the Yankees, but between Frazier getting hurt every time he’s given a chance or playing horrific defense or underperforming, it hasn’t worked out. But now Frazier has another chance to prove to the Yankees he should be part of the future, and he started his 2020 season off with a home run and followed with a rocket single and crushed double. I get that Mike Tuchman is vaulable for now and has a place on this team, but Frazier has a future. Frazier is 25 and Tauchman is 29. On Opening Day next year, Frazier will be 26 and Tauchman will be 30. Brett Gradner can’t be a Yankeee forever (and with the way he’s playing, he won’t be one in 20201) and the Yankees will need major league outfield depth. Frazier needs to use this opportunity to prove he should be an everyday player when the frail outfield inevitably gets hurt. This might be his last chance to do so.
5. DJ LeMahieu is the best player on the Yankees. Judge is the most important, but LeMahieu is the best. LeMahieu is hitting .431(!) with a 1.048 OPS as a leadoff hitter. (It’s actually unbelievable.) On top of that, he gets a hit every time there are runners in scoring position, is the most clutch hitter on the team and can play all over the infield. He was the team’s MVP last season and will be again this season if Judge can’t stay healthy. LeMahieu is 32, but doesn’t play like it, and the Yankees have to extend him this season or re-sign him after the season. This team needs LeMahieu’s contact, unshiftable bat, and it can’t survive without him.
6. Jonathan Holder isn’t elite and he can’t be trusted to be elite. He’s a good, middle-tier reliever. He’s not someone who should be asked to close out a game with a four-run lead in the ninth. I don’t care that the run Holder allowed on Wednesday was the first earned run he’s allowed all season. A 6 1/3 inning sample size isn’t how I judge Holder. I judge him over his career. Yes, in 2018 he had a crazy scoreless streak, but John Flaherty once had a 27-game hitting streak in the majors. Crazy things happen with mediocre players sometimes. In 2018, Holder also pooped his pants in the biggest game of the season to open a four-game series in Boston with the division on the line when he allowed seven earned runs without recording an out. And last season, Holder had a 6.31 ERA and 4.45 FIP and pitched himself off the team. He’s good enough to be on the Yankees, he’s not good enough to be treated as a trustwothy option when Boone is inexplicably trying to steal outs without using Zack Britton.
7. Luis Avilan (or “Everyday Avilan”) pitched on Wednesday because why wouldn’t he? He has to warm up or come into every game as a Yankee. It’s a rule. Boone loves Avilan and that love will likely carry over into October. In the 2011 ALDS, Girardi used Luis Ayala twice in the series before using David Robertson once. I wouldn’t be surprised to see something similar happen this postseason with Boone going to Avilan before he goes go any of his elite relievers. Remember, Boone doesn’t only try to steal outs in the regular season. He does it in the postseason too.
8. I don’t expect to see Giancarlo Stanton again this season. the recovery time for a Grade 1 hamstring strain is three to four weeks for an average person. Stanton isn’t average in terms of rehabbing injuries and getting healthy. Last season, Stanton had a biceps strain turn into a shoulder strain while rehabbing the biceps strain and that turned into a calf strain. He played in 18 regular-season games and then got hurt in the postseason as well. He would have missed the first half (or more) of this season if it had started on time, and then after 14 games as the DH in this shortened season, he has a hamstring strain. If Stanton comes back and is the player he can be when healthy and going right, it will be a bonus for the 2020 Yankees. I wouldn’t count on seeing him again this season and I won’t believe he will play again in 2020 until he’s actually standing in the batter’s box in a real game.
9. The Yankees got the Rays’ season back on track for them. The Rays have won five in a row and are 1 1/2 games behind the Yankees. The Yankees are off on Thursday and the Rays will most likely beat the Red Sox with the Yankees off, so the lead will be one game. The Yankees need to beat up on the Red Sox this wekend at the Stadium the way they did two weeks ago and the way the entire league has beat up on them this season. Whichever teams beats up on the Red Sox more this season will likely win the division. It’s good to have the Red Sox at the basement of the division. It would have been even better if this were a 162-game season with fans so their fanbase would have had to sit through this miserable season for even longer.
10. The Yankees need to win the divsion and have home-field advantage throughout the postseason. Michael Kay gave a stat the other night that the Yankees have now won 26 straight home series. That’s because the Yankees are built to play at the Stadium with power hitting and power pitching. We saw how badly the Yankees are at the Trop and we know their struggles in Houston and Oakland as well. They need do everything they can to make sure they play the most games possible at the Stadium in October and that means playing their everyday lineup every day. Just getting into the postseason isn’t enough. It hasn’t been enough for a long time.
Even in a game in which the Yankees led by eight runs, Aaron Boone finds a way to frustrate Yankees fans.
When the Yankees lead a game 3-0 after the first inning, 6-0 after the third innning and 8-0 after the fifth inning, there should be no reason to get upset, frustrated or annoyed with Aaron Boone. But the Yankees manager always finds a way.
Boone made questionable decision after questionable decision on Tuesday night against the Braves when he removed Aaron Judge in the sixth inning, didn’t allow Jordan Montgomery to pitch the seventh inning, turned to David Hale before Adam Ottavino and went to Luis Cesssa before Chad Green. Boone essentially had to do nothing other than sit back and watch his team blow out the Braves and he couldn’t even do that.
