The New York Yankees are working to shape their roster and lineup before heading into the playoffs as they tail the Toronto Blue Jays for the lead in the American League East. Injuries are playing a big role in the current starters for the team as both Mark Teixeira and Nathan Eovaldi are hitting the disabled lists, young guns like Greg Bird and Luis Severino are going to be relied upon heavily in the coming weeks.
According to a release by the Yankees via ESPN.com, Teixeira is officially hitting the disabled list for a shin injury as Bird steps in as his replacement. The question is whether Bird is slowly replacing the veteran first baseman as he continues to be a solid addition to the lineup. Bird is proving why the Yankees refused to trade him at the mid-season deadline. The first baseman might not be as great of a fielder as Teixeira is, but his bat is better. According to ESPN, in 22 games, Bird is hitting .263 with five home runs. In 111 games, Teixeira hit .255 with 31 home runs. Bird is the future and might make Teixeira and his $23 million price tag expendable.
The same could begin to be said for CC Sabathia. According to Andrew Marchand of ESPN, Sabathia is set to make a start on Wednesday after a knee injury sidelined him. That should help with Eovaldi hitting the disabled list. However, is Sabathia a postseason starter when Eovaldi returns? Severino is proving that he is a playoff pitcher as he continues to dominate opponents. Sabathia has been doing the exact opposite and it is making him expendable as well heading into the offseason. Reports are already flying that the Yankees will aim to drop the high-priced pitcher this winter and the progress of Severino could determine if that is true or not.
The last question mark is Rob Refsnyder and his quest to replace Stephen Drew. According to the New York Post, Joe Girdardi has confidence in Drew regardless if no one else does. The rookie infielder has not been playing, but manager Joe Girardi believes that could change sooner rather than later. For now, Girardi is sticking with Drew and Brendan Ryan.
"I debated long and hard about what to do today, but we decided to go with Brendan," Girardi said, via the New York Post. "Brendan's been here, our extra infielder, in a sense, all year even though he's been hurt. Those other two will probably get in, but I decided to go with Brendan today."
