The New York Yankees’ injury concerns grow larger by the day, but as long as Aaron Judge is in the lineup, all is well.
Judge hit two home runs and made a leaping catch at the wall to rob a homer as the Yankees opened a three-game series with a 10-4 victory over the host Seattle Mariners on Monday.
The series will continue Tuesday night.
The Yankees played without first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who was nursing a stiff neck. Rizzo was hurt in a collision with San Diego’s Fernando Tatis Jr. on Sunday. Rizzo underwent concussion testing in New York and had no issues, but New York manager Aaron Boone decided to rest Rizzo after originally saying the three-time All-Star would be good to go.
“He should be fine,” Boone said. “It’s just something we didn’t want to mess with too much.”
In the third inning on Monday, Harrison Bader legged out an infield single before motioning to the Yankees’ dugout. Bader, who missed the first 30 games of the season with an oblique strain, left with what the team later called right-hamstring tightness.
Boone said Bader would have an MRI exam on Tuesday.
“They don’t seem to think it’s too serious, but with the (hamstring), you don’t want to rule out an (injured-list stay) or whatever,” Boone said. “We’ll see what we have (after the exam).”
It has been that kind of season for the Yankees, who are without outfielder/designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton, third baseman Josh Donaldson and catcher Jose Trevino, all because of hamstring strains.
Trevino went through a full workout in Seattle and could be activated in the next couple of days, according to Boone, with Donaldson and Stanton expected back later this week.
Left-hander Carlos Rodon (left-elbow strain/back stiffness), who has yet to pitch this season, threw off the bullpen mound on Monday in Seattle, but there is no timetable for his return.
Since Judge returned from his own stint on the 10-day injured list May 9 after recovering from a right-hip strain, he’s batting .357 (25-for-70) with 11 homers and 24 RBIs.
“He’s really good, knows his game and doesn’t get away from it, Mariners manager Scott Servais said of Judge. “That’s why he was the MVP last year.”
Judge went 3-for-4 on Monday with three extra-base hits and three RBIs. His first homer, a liner off the left-field foul pole that snapped a 1-1 tie in the third inning, had a 116.9 mph exit velocity, the second-hardest-hit ball in the Statcast era (since 2015) at Seattle’s ballpark.
“That’s one of the great individual games that you’ll see,” Boone said.
Yankees left-hander Nestor Cortes (4-2, 5.30 ERA) is scheduled to start Tuesday against Mariners right-hander Logan Gilbert (3-2, 3.60).
Cortes is 0-0 with a 4.26 ERA in three career appearances against Seattle, including two starts. He pitched six innings in each of his past two starts after going that deep only twice in his first eight starts of the season.
Gilbert is 1-1 with a 7.16 ERA in three career starts against the Yankees. He has won his past two starts and tied a career high by pitching eight innings in his latest outing, against the Oakland A’s on Thursday.
–Field Level Media
