Injury Updates: Tex, Robertson, Ryan, Ramirez

April 18, 2014 by Mike Axisa 50 Comments

The Yankees are starting to get healthy. Or, really, several of their players have started working their way back after being shut down for various lengths of time. No one has actually come off the DL yet. Here are some updates on the walking wounded, courtesy of George King, Erik Boland, and Jorge Castillo.

Mark Teixeira (hamstring) went 0-for-1 with two walks during an Extended Spring Training game yesterday and 1-for-5 with a strikeout today. He played the field both games and had to run hard on several occasions. “I will be fully ready to play Sunday and disappointed if I don’t.,” said Teixeira, who is eligible to activated off the DL on Sunday.
David Robertson (groin) threw a 25-pitch bullpen session yesterday and is scheduled to throw in an inning in Extended Spring Training tomorrow. “Get Sunday and Monday off and be ready to go Tuesday,’’ said Robertson. He’s eligible to be activated off the DL on Tuesday.
Brendan Ryan (back) got several at-bats in a simulated game this morning, his first game action since getting hurt. Because he missed just about all of Spring Training, Ryan’s rehab will be much longer than a handful of minor league games. He’s still a few weeks from returning.
Jose Ramirez (oblique) was one of the pitchers to face Teixeira this morning. He missed all of Spring Training but is throwing now, so that’s good. No word on when he’ll rejoin one of the minor league affiliates.

I’m One

Teix coming back on Sunday. Who goes down? Gotta beleive it’s Anna which leaves Solarte as the back up SS. While I’d prefer Anna’s D, Solarte is just doing too much for him to be sent down. Is there another option?
- I’m One
  
  Answering my own question, I guess Sizemore is an option if the Yankees value Anna’s D over Sizemore’s versatility and offense.
  - Chip Rodriguez
    
    Anna’s got a sharp glove, but it’s not as if Solarte has been a total butcher. And even Jeter’s looked solid. Limited range of course, but solid.
  - Jorge Steinbrenner
    
    Anna has options and NOT the opt-out. Sizemore, I believe, has options AND the opt-out.
    
    It seemed to some of us on here, including Mike, that a roster spot was Sizemore’s to lose if he didn’t only have 11 AB’s in ST.
    
    I still think they’re quite high on Sizemore and would love to see him alternate with Johnson out there. The only new variable that’s really introduced itself here is Solarte, the man we are not allowed to say may come back to earth one.
    
    Solarte hasn’t been the butcher, offers huge versatility, and is still hitting like a damn demon out there. He HAS to keep his spot right now.
    
    There’s no shame in a guy like Anna riding the shuttle a bit this season. It is much better than what he was doing previously, and he’ll be up again.
    
    I guess its possible that Sizemore may be just fine with riding the shuttle as well, but why risk the depth?
    - Jorge Steinbrenner
      
      “come back to earth one day.”
      - I’m One
        
        Say it? We’re not even allowed to think it!
        
        #teamsolarte
      - Deathstroke Heathcott
        
        Would there be any chance the Yankees send down Solarte for a bit just to see if he can play short or do you think that would be something they’d prefer to do at the major league level?
        
        Right now I think the Yanks first move would be to ask Sizemore if he would waive his first opt out. With the uncertainty in the Yankees infield still, I could see him agreeing.
        
        Jorge Steinbrenner
        
        He’d still be on the 40-man, and he’s coming back up at some…..WAIT, WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO ME?!?! #teamsizemore
        
        I’m One
        
        Solarte did play a few games at SS during ST. I imagine they have an idea of what they’ve got in him for that position.
    - Andy in Sunny Daytona
      
      The opt-out is null now that he’s on the 40-man.
      - I’m One
        
        If this is acurate (and I have no reason to doubt you), then I’m guessing Sizemore is the one to go. Solarte can do basically what he can do defensively (with the exception of backing up Teix at 1B and that is covered by Johnson anyway), and that allows you to have a true defensive replacement at the non-1B IF spots. Unless Solarte reverts back to that AAA player, I think he and Anna stay with Sizemore at AAA as an injury replacement.
  - mitch
    
    I think Sizemore is the guy to go. Yesterday on Francesca, Joe noted that Solarte is more of an emergency SS than a true backup. I think they’ll keep Anna for now, and obviously Solarte is playing way too well to send down.
    - RetroRob
      
      Then how do they give Jeter a day off? He’s already missed three (or is it four?) games. He’s turning 40, coming off a missed season with a broken ankle. You get the picture. They need a backup who can play regularly, not in an emergency. That’s why they signed Ryan.
      
      Plus, even if Solarte survives this cut, the team will need to make room for Ryan on his return.
      
      I’m not sure how Solarte survives on the MLB roster.
      - mitch
        
        ??? I said i think they’ll send down Sizemore and keep Anna so they’ll have a true backup SS
        
        RetroRob
        
        Sorry, misread that!
      - stuckey
        
        Anna AND Sizemore are currently on the roster.
        
        One goes when Tex gets back, the other goes when Ryan gets back.
        
        Johnson’s your BU1B
        
        Ryan is your BUSS
        
        Solarte is your BU3B, and BU OR starting 2B
Jeff

I wonder if Cashman might try to trade Ryan with Anna and Solarte both able to fill in at SS. Probably just wishful thinking on my part.
- Jorge Steinbrenner
  
  It’s possible. I’m not quite sure there’s a reason to. You could always send Anna and/or Solarte to AAA.
  
  Let’s not diss Brendan Ryan too much here. I know he’s not an electric hitter, but he’s a fine backup SS.
  - Deathstroke Heathcott
    
    “he’s not an electric hitter,” is an understatement but you’re not wrong, doesn’t take much of a bat to be a good ss backup, just a great glove like Ryan has.
- Deathstroke Heathcott
  
  We have no evidence that Solarte can handle SS. Don’t see why he couldn’t be reasonable there but we just haven’t seen it yet.
  - Preston
    
    Joe and co. have seen him play SS in ST games and in workouts. They obviously like him there less than Anna. But that doesn’t necessarily mean they think he’s unplayable there.
Dalek Jeter

Wait…positive prognoses about players on the Yankees? They do know that they’re the Yankees right?
Jorge Steinbrenner

The bullpen’s been great, but I can’t wait to have Robertson back. I want to see him succeed out there.
- I’m One
  
  And Cabral is the easy choice to send down when Robertson’s ready. At least there’s no controversy here. The IF conversation should be very interesting when Ryan is ready to return.
  - Deathstroke Heathcott
    
    I wouldn’t send down Cabral, that’s just begging for another injury and I’m afraid he’s gonna start targeting starting pitchers now.
    - Cesar “Stairs” Cabral
      
      *nods*
      - Deathstroke Heathcott
        
        Please just leave Pineda and Tanaka alone. I beg you.
JGYank

From the May 9, 2013 Jeter diary (May 4th entry):

“Anyway, this time it was Nunez getting hurt. He had to leave the game with some kind of rib cage issue. It’s especially tough because I’ve had a lot of time to mentor him on this homestand. To teach him some of the tricks you only learn after playing in the bigs for more than a decade. To pick him up in the dugout after a bad throw to first. “It’s just one play,” I tell him. “You can’t be afraid to fail. The worst thing that happens is they trade you to Minnesota for a lefty bullpen arm.”

Prophetic.

Here’s the link:

http://grantland.com/the-triangle/derek-jeters-diary-ducks-have-no-place-in-baseball/
- Dalek Jeter
  
  Fantastic.
  - JGYank
    
    Cash must of read that and is trolling us.
- JGYank
  
  May 5th entry actually.
Vern Sneaker

Clearly, Anna is the odd man out here at this point. And even if Solarte tails off somewhat, he’s still more valuable than Ryan when Ryan’s ready to play, in my opinion. Solarte would have to totally revert to looking like a AAA guy for me to want Ryan instead of him, and I don’t see that happening.
- RetroRob
  
  Ryan has a two year contract. He’s returning.
  
  Solarte is having a nice run. The Yankees and fans should be happy, but he’s not the second coming. He can be sent down.
  - stuckey
    
    No reason to, you seem to be forgetting Anna AND Sizemore are currently on the 25 man, and Tex and Ryan are only 2 guys.
    
    Solarte has the same roster spot he had when ST broke and Tex wasn’t hurt.
    
    Unless you’re saying Sizemore over Solarte?
    - RetroRob
      
      I’m looking at Anna sitting in Ryan’s spot. Anna will be sent down.
      
      It’s the battle between Solarte and Sizemore for that 25th spot. One of them will have to go down. I believe they can send Solarte down. His opt out doesn’t carry over. I believe Sizemore’s does, unless they reach an agreement with him.
      
      I’d like all of them to stay, but they can’t, so it’s more a question of figuring which one gets the trip back to AAA, or allowed to leave in the case of Sizemore.
      - stuckey
        
        If you’re assuming that by the time Ryan is ready to come off the DL, Solarte will have cooled off significantly, that’s one thing.
        
        But unless he gets REAL cold before then, there is no way Yanks say ‘thanks for the .900+ OPS and switchhitting, and playing 3 positions (and perhaps more, he played some outfield in ST as well) but we’re picking Sizemore over you.’
        
        As I stated in another thread, that’s not how organizations handle players.
        
        mitch
        
        I think it’s way too early to speculate what will happen once Ryan is healthy. A lot can happen in three weeks. Let’s wait and see how Solarte, Sizemore and Anna are playing and let’s see how healthy Jeter, Roberts, and Tex are
        
        Preston
        
        Exactly, and back injuries tend to linger so it might be longer. Injuries and/or ineffectiveness will probably shake it all out.
RetroRob

Has a team ever sent a player down to AAA who was leading the league in batting? I think Solarte is now second, but still, this could be interesting.

The easy, very short-term answer today is send Sizemore down. It’s not May 1 yet.
- Andy in Sunny Daytona
  
  Scott Sizemore has a major league contract now. There’s no mid-season opt out when you’re on the 40-man.
  - stuckey
    
    I don’t think Solarte vs Sizemore is even close to being an issue, unless Solarte drops off the table by the time Ryan is ready.
    
    I don’t think Sizemore’s deal is an issue either, for 3 possible reasons.
    
    1.) The opt out became null when he was added to the ML roster. Not sure if this is true, but it’s possible.
    
    2.) and more importantly, we now know he has TWO opt outs, May and Aug 1, which they’re exercisable on those dates and not in perpetuity. Given it’s 12 days from now and Ryan just started doing baseball activities, you simply wait until May 2 to activate him.
    
    3.) If I’m Sizemore, I might accept an assignment to Scranton. He knows he’s ONE injury from SIX different guys (Johnson, Jeter, Ryan, Solarte, Roberts, Tex) away from being called up to a potential postseason team, and a ML job may not be waiting for him elsewhere on May 1.
    
    Scranton may be his best bet on May 1.
- Darren
  
  I’ll give you $100 in real money if this happens.
  - Darren
    
    OOPS! I thought you said send Solarte down. Offer retracted! I will not give you $100 if they send Sizemore down!
mt

I think Sizemore goes down this time around (when Teix comes back): Anna can still protect Jeter from a SS perspective. (I am also assuming the Yankees no longer have to worry about Sizemore’s opt-out since he has been called up; if not, there may be different answers.)

When Ryan comes back, it will probably be Anna going down, especially if Solarte is still hitting anywhere near where he is hitting.

Then bench will be Solarte, Ryan, John Ryan Murphy and Ichiro – Solarte will get playing time at 2b and 3B filling in more or less for Johnson and Roberts depending on how Solarte is hitting. Johnson will be back-up 1B (from my perspective , not optimal but if it means a hot Solarte can stay up here then so be it.)

Of course Johnson and especially Roberts/Jeter could get hurt and all of this is moot in terms of wondering which of Anna/Sizemore/Solarte gets sent down.

It may go away any day now but nice to see this this morning after 10% of season is behind us:

1. Alexei Ramirez, CHW.381
2. Yangervis Solarte, NYY.373
3. Jacoby Ellsbury, NYY .364
4. Alberto Callaspo, OAK .357
4. Chris Colabello, MIN .357

Solarte has been struggling more with breaking balls and change-ups recently after his torrid start – hope last night is start of an adjustment he has made to how he has been pitched.
Long-Past-His-Day-Rod

Hey guys, how about we not worry about Sizemore, Solarte, Ryan, and the like? Just sign Stephen Drew!

Stephen Drew, Stephen Drew, Stephen Drew, Stephen Drew, Stephen Drew, Stephen Drew, Stephen Drew, Stephen Drew, Stephen Drew.

Sorry, it’s out of my system now.
Darren

Any chance in hell they send down Cabral or Dellin? Would be great if at least for a few days the infield would be at above average depth while Tex makes his way back. Although as I’m thinking about it, I guess they won’t do it if Sunday is a bullpen starting day. If they decide to give Tex one more day, they could wait and swap him for Nuno.
fred robbins

what’s the guess on what the lineup will look like with Tex back in at 1st base? I worry that the chemistry and value of the lineup out there now will be badly impacted by the return of a .240 non clutch hitting and not as good on defense as he used to be- tex
- Preston
  
  You realize the guy who’s playing 1b is Kelly Johnson right? The guy who walks less, strikes out more, hits for less power and has put up impressive batting averages of .222, .225, and .235 the last three years (his current BA is .234). KJ is a fine player and I’m glad he’s on the team. But the only way he’s a better offensive player than Teixeira is if Tex is still injured.
- Tom K
  
  This lineup with “great chemistry” hasn’t exactly been lighting up the scoreboard with runs.
  
  Teix plays first…..with platoon options at 2B and 3B going forward. Johnson starts to play more of the role he was signed for.
Dave Guarnieri

DROB also comes off the DL next week. I think Girardi was auditioning Betances last night and he passed despite some wildness. Anna probably goes down. Tex is a constant injury concern even in uniform. Sizemore played reasonably well at 1st last night (I think he was on audition as well) and made an especially nice pick on the triple play. He also gives you a lot more punch as a PH than Anna. So next week I envision Tex and DROB up, Anna and Cabral down. I feel bad for Anna, but it’s a long season.