The weekend series between the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox was in jeopardy because of the Bombers’ COVID-19 outbreak, but MLB will give it a go and the matchups will begin tonight at Yankee Stadium.
The Yankees have six positive cases on their roster: Aaron Judge, Gio Urshela, Kyle Higashioka, Nestor Cortes Jr., Jonathan Loaisiga, and Wandy Peralta.
It will be a tall task to win the series against the Red Sox without their best player, starting third baseman and key reliever (Loaisiga), but it looks like the Yankees will need to move forward without the six players for the time being.
They will likely be placed on the COVID-19 list. Yankees’ manager Aaron Boone said that he expects each of the six positive players to miss at least 10 days.
Per Bryan Hoch of MLB.com, none of the COVID-19 positive Yankees are exhibiting severe symptoms. Boone said that “a few have said they feel like they have a cold or do not feel well.â€
Jordan Montgomery will take the hill for the Yankees
As for tonight’s game, Jordan Montgomery will start in Domingo German’s place, and there haven’t been any official announcements regarding the latter. It’s unclear if he will make a start on the weekend or if he will be skipped.
The Red Sox’s supremacy against the Yankees this year has been evident, as they have swept both three-game sets that have been played to this point.
Boston currently leads the AL East division against all odds, and the Yankees are third with a 46-43 record, 8.0 games behind their archrivals and 4.5 out of the second Wild Card spot, currently held by the Oakland Athletics.
Here is tonight’s lineup:
DJ LeMahieu 3B
Giancarlo Stanton DH
Rougned Odor 2B
Gary Sanchez C
Gleyber Torres SS
Brett Gardner CF
Chris Gittens 1B
Trey Amburgey RF
Tim Locastro LF
Jordan Montgomery SP