The NY Yankees pulled off a three-game sweep of the San Francisco Giants to win 11 out of their last 13 games, however, third baseman Gio Urshela and second baseman DJ LeMahieu left Sunday’s game prematurely due to injuries.
In the fifth inning, Giants relief pitcher Nick Vincent hit Urshela’s left hand with a pitch. Urshela exited the game and x-rays were negative. He’s currently listed as day-to-day.
LeMahieu started Sunday’s game, but left after the third inning due to knee inflammation. He originally injured his right knee the previous game when he fouled a ball off it. He remained in the game on Saturday, but manager Aaron Boone pulled him on Sunday.
Fifteen members of the NY Yankees spent time on the injured list this year. Only CC Sabathia and Gary Sanchez spent time on the IL and returned to action. Even without sluggers Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, the Yankees have been trying to find ways to win ball games. However, the ranks have been severely depleted.
LeMahieu could become unlucky #16. LeMahieu is scheduled for an MRI and will consult a specialist to determine whether or not he will be placed on the IL.
Unlucky LeMahieu
During the first two weeks of the season, LeMahieu carried the Yankees as the team’s best hitter. He recently busted out of a mini-slump with a five-game hitting streak including nine hits.
The Yankees acquired LeMahieu and Troy Tulowiski to help fill in for shortstop Didi Gregorious, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery. LeMahieu provided consistency from day one. The 30-year old veteran was hitting .310 before he left Sunday’s game.
“It’s the story of the season,” LeMahieu said. “It’s frustrating.”
The Yankees cannot afford to lose another replacement, especially valuable contributors like Urshela and LeMahieu. They are thin in the infield already with injuries to Greg Bird (foot), Troy Tulowiski (calf), Did Gregorious (Tommy John surgery), and Miguel Andujar (shoulder).
Gio Clean Up
Pretty much everyone who roots for the Yankees was unaware of Gio Urshela. The 27-year old from Colombia bounced around the Cleveland Indians and Toronto Blue Jays the last two seasons playing in just 88 games.
The Blue Jays traded Urshela to the Yankees last summer. Urshela finished last season playing shortstop and third base for the Yanks’ AAA team in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
When 2018 AL Rookie of the Year finalist Miguel Andujar went down with a shoulder injury, the Yankees called up Urshela. He demonstrated great defense early on, but he finally found his hitting groove last week. He drilled his first home run in Anaheim against the Angels.
“I’ve always felt with this team, through ups and downs, they’re really good at turning the page,” said Aaron Boone. “Guys are coming in ready for any kind of role, any kind of situation, and they’re delivering.”
Before he injured his wrist in San Francisco, Urshela was hitting .351. Boone even batted him clean up one day.
Replacement Yanks Keep Winning
The Yankees won 11 out of their last 13 games to improve to 17-11. They trail the first-place Tampa Rays (17-9) by 1.5 games in the AL East. The Seattle Mariners, who got off to a sizzling start, are the only other team in the American League who won more games (18) than the Yankees.
The Yanks are currently on a nine-game swing on the West Coast. The Bronx Bombers took 3 out of 4 in Anaheim against the Angels. The Yankees returned to San Francisco to play the Giants for the first time in the Bay Area in almost a decade. So many Yankees fans converged on Oracle Ballpark that boisterous chants of “Let’s go Yankees!” were clearly audible on television broadcasts.
The Yankees swept the NL West cellar dwellers. Gary Sanchez finally looked like his old self after the Kraken crushed his first career grand slam on Saturday. The 467-foot blast was the farthest grand salami hit since the MLB implemented technology to track those sort of things in 2015.
First baseman Luke Voit went yard in Oracle Park during the sweep. He improved his on-base streak to 39 games. Voit is now hitting .283. He leads the team in RBI with 25. He’s tied with Sanchez for the team-lead with 8 home runs. Voit won the AL Player of the Week award with 4 home runs.
The Yanks have a two-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks to finish off their road trip.