During Tuesday’s series opener against the Houston Astros in Yankee Stadium, New York Yankees’ second baseman Rougned Odor scored the last run in a four-run sixth inning, Racing home after an errant throw by third baseman Alex Bregman.
To be able to score, Odor had to squeeze his left leg into a tight space left by opposing catcher Martin Maldonado, resulting in an awkward twist on his left knee. He had some issues walking under his own power initially, and had to be taken out of the game.
The official diagnosis, according to the New York Yankees’ official MLB site, is a sprained left knee, and the team put Odor on the 10-day injured list on Wednesday before the second game of the series which the Bombers also won.
The Yankees dodged a bullet
The second baseman underwent an MRI on Tuesday evening at New York-Presbyterian Hospital and was later examined by team physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad on Wednesday.
“All things considered, we kind of lucked out,†Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “You saw my reaction; I jumped out on the field because it looked ugly to me right away, and I was pretty concerned. I think it’s going to be on the shorter side. … I don’t think it’s going to be something that’s too long.â€
Indeed, the injury looked worse at first sight. The Yankees recalled pitcher Albert Abreu from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Wednesday to take Odor’s spot in the roster.
DJ LeMahieu will slide over to his natural second base and Mike Ford will start at first until Luke oit returns next week. However, Tyler Wade could also be involved.
“That’ll be the day-by-day decision,†Boone said. “I like what Tyler brings in his versatility off the bench. Maybe in the next week, we’ll have Luke in the mix, so that changes the dynamic a little bit. It’ll be day-by-day based on matchup, based on need.â€