Two months late, DJ LeMahieu finally appears ready to make his season debut.
The Yankees veteran infielder flew west on Sunday night after finishing his rehab assignment, with the expectation that he will be activated off the 60-day injured list on Tuesday before opening a series against the Angels.
LeMahieu’s season was delayed by fouling a ball off his right foot in a March 16 spring training game.
Yankees infielder DJ LeMahieu is set to make his season debut on Tuesday
He was initially diagnosed with a bone bruise, but once the swelling subsided, further testing revealed he actually had a non-displaced foot fracture.
His first attempt at a rehab assignment lasted just one inning on April 23, when he pulled himself due to soreness in the foot and was shut down for a week before ramping back up.
The second rehab assignment went smoother for LeMahieu, who played in six games without any apparent issues, going 4-for-15 with five walks and building up to playing back-to-back games over the weekend at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Manager Aaron Boone has said LeMahieu will be the Yankees’ starting third baseman, taking over for Oswaldo Cabrera (and the now-injured Jon Berti), who did a solid job filling in over the first two months of the season.
The Yankees will still likely ease LeMahieu back into full-time action, but his arrival should make the Yankees’ lineup even deeper as he slots into the seven- or eight-hole.
LeMahieu will also be able to give Anthony Rizzo an occasional day off at first base, as the veteran Rizzo has started 54 of the first 55 games.
LeMahieu could also give Gleyber Torres a sporadic breather at second base, where Torres has started 53 of 55 games.
The pending free agent has hit better of late, batting .262 with a .756 OPS over his past 28 games — and .289 with a .872 OPS over his past 14 games.
Gleyber Torres’ defense remains polarizing for the Yankees
Torres’ defense remains polarizing — he makes some terrific plays but also has seven errors, including a crucial one Sunday that turned into a four-run inning in the 5-2 loss to the Padres.
“After every error, you have to clean it up,” Torres said. “It’s a long season.”
Torres ranks 13th among second basemen with two Outs Above Average, per Baseball Savant, but 17th with minus-three Defensive Runs Saved.
“He has made a lot of really good plays and he’s in an extended period right now where he has been excellent out there,” Boone said. “That’s a play obviously he should have made [Sunday]. It’s not from a lack of work and focus. He tries and we’re trying to make sure he’s as consistent as can be.”
After Anthony Volpe extended his hitting streak to 19 games on Sunday, Robinson Cano is up next.
Cano put together a 23-game hitting streak in 2012, matching a 23-gamer that Alex Rodriguez had in 2007.
The only other hitting streak longer than 23 this century was Derek Jeter’s 25-game hitting streak in 2006.
