The NY Yankees have injuries piling up again and now names like Brandon Phillips, Nick Franklin, Ike Davis, Chase Headley, Joel Hanrahan and Didi Gregorius could be in the trade mix with Brian Roberts, Francisco Cervelli, Derek Jeter, David Robertson, Brian McCann and Mark Teixeira going down with injuries at various points already this early into the season.
The Yankees dealt with numerous injuries last season and they suffered greatly and while they knew it could be a concern in 2014, it is starting to rear its head in a number of ways. Teixeira went down with a Grade 1 strain and while that is not serious, he is on the DL and so is David Robertson, which has put the bullpen in flux and now Jeter has missed two games, while McCann is getting an x-ray on his finger and Cervelli is likely to hit the disabled list with a hamstring injury as well after suffering it on Sunday night.
The Yankees have already had to move Kelly Johnson from third base to first base to make up for the injuries and that has left a void being filled by rookies in Dean Anna and Yangervis Solarte and while they have been solid, that may not last into May and farther into the season. Anna started in place for Jeter on Sunday, while at one point Carlos Beltran had to take over at first base and Alfonso Soriano was moved to his old position at second and now the Yankees may have to scramble a bit.
According to Jerry Crasnick at ESPN, the Yankees also could look at Hanrahan as a shirt term option to take over for Robertson, as he could be on the DL for a little while and they need some support in the bullpen. Hanrahan is coming off of Tommy John surgery, but he had some productive seasons with the Red Sox and the Yankees could be interested along with the Oakland Athletics and the NY Mets.
Cervelli is likely to hit the DL and that is a big blow for the Yankees, especially if McCann comes down with an injury and while Roberts right now is day to day, it's concerning how the injuries are piling up. The team has Jeter coming back after playing in just 17 games last season and he is getting more off days to help with that, but since Brendan Ryan has been injured, that makes the position a bit weaker as well.
The team could look at someone like Nick Franklin as an option, as the Mariners have shopped him since signing Robinson Cano, but so far no deals have been made. Franklin is off to a hot start in Triple A and that will boost his value and he can play both second base and short so that makes him even more valuable. The Mets have shopped Ike Davis for a while and while that may not be a move the Yankees make, that would help stabilize the infield until Teixeira returns and even then, he is still coming back from that wrist injury from last season on top of the hammy.
