TAMPA – DJ LeMahieu won’t be manning the hot corner or leading off when the Yankees open their season in Houston on March 28.
Instead, the third baseman will start the season on the injured list after fouling a ball off his right foot on March 16. Brian Cashman made the announcement on Monday morning.
“It hasn’t really responded quick enough,” the general manager said. “At this stage, he’s not going to be ready for Opening Day. We’re not officially IL’ing him today, but he won’t be ready to start the season.”
While LeMahieu has done some baseball activities since suffering a significant bone bruise, the Yankees are being cautious with him. An injury to the same foot compromised LeMahieu in 2022.
Cashman said that LeMahieu’s IL stint can be backdated and he could potentially return for the Yankees’ home opener on April 5. However, Cashman added that LeMahieu will get another MRI this week and that he’s also dealt with some inflammation.
LeMahieu has been in touch with a podiatrist since an initial MRI and CT scan came back clean.
“It’s just a little bit slow go on the recovery side,” Cashman said. “He banged that up pretty good.”
With LeMahieu sidelined, Cashman said that Oswaldo Cabrera is the “best internal candidate” to play third. While the Yankees could still add from outside the organization, Cabrera has been red-hot after a poor start to spring training.
“He’s done a nice job here,” Cashman said of the versatile 25-year-old. “I think he got out of the gate a little slow, but he’s been playing really well.”
External Options
While Cashman seemed comfortable with Cabrera at third, he said that the Yankees are still working through their bench and bullpen options. Additions could be made to both groups as spring ends and teams crunch rosters.
“We’re evaluating all the options,” Cashman said. “There’s always a potential trade or designations, opt outs, that type of stuff. So we’re evaluating the field there just to make sure. We got obviously some days, so we’ll probably go into Houston, we’ll have conversations with some guys saying, ‘You’ve beaten people out internally, you’ll be joining us in Houston, but no guarantee you’re officially on the team until we exhaust making sure there isn’t better options outside.’”
The Yankees have already told pitching prospect Clayton Beeter that he’s won an internal competition and that he’s traveling to Houston. Non-roster invitee Nick Burdi, a reliever, was told the same, per the New York Post.
As for the bench, the Yankees’ internal options fighting for a spot include Kevin Smith and Jahmai Jones.
Rizzo’s Ready
Anthony Rizzo (lat) returned to the lineup as a DH for the Yankees’ Grapefruit League finale on Monday. He expects to play first on Opening Day.
“I wouldn’t be in there today if I didn’t anticipate that, that’s for sure,” Rizzo said. “I’m not gonna play in a spring training game and jeopardize that, so I feel great.”