With the start of the ALDS just one day away, the New York Yankees received fantastic injury news that will undoubtedly help them succeed in the playoffs. While it came down to a near a game-time decision, Edwin Encarnacion will be available for the postseason and starting catcher Gary Sanchez will return as well.
The New York Yankees have had incredibly bad luck with injuries:
The team has been decimated by injuries the entire 2019 campaign, setting an MLB record with 30 players on the injured list. They nearly started their first postseason series against the Minnesota Twins without two influential players in Sanchez and Encarnacion.
Sanchez, who is returning from a groin injury, suffered several weeks ago, played in the most recent three-game series against the Texas Rangers. He went 1-for-6, striking out four times. Hopefully, the groin will not give out, and he can manage to stay healthy for the playoffs, as the Yankees desperately need his defensive qualities.
“I felt very good,” Sanchez said through a spanish translator. “Health is very important and felt great. … Definitely (feel like the timing is coming back), seeing the ball better and looking forward to Friday and hoping the improvement continues and I feel like that on Friday.”
Encarnacion, on the other hand, suffered an oblique strain that had limited him severely since September 12. He was expected to return last Friday, but he was not mentally prepared to take live at-bats. Luckily, he was able to prove enough during a simulation program to ensure his availability on Friday.
“I do,” Boone said Wednesday, as per SNY. “Smoked a couple balls out there, hit a homer and yesterday really cut loose with some. I think, in his mind, he swung aggressively at a couple of (pitches) where he swung and missed — that’s where you’re going to notice (rust) probably. I think he got through that. So I think yesterday was a little confidence booster for him as far as availability to let it go and coming in today feeling like he’s ready. So hopefully we get through today and make that decision.”
It’s expected that pitcher James Paxton will start game one against the Twins, and having Sanchez behind the plate would provide a considerable boost to his potential success. It’s still undetermined how much the Yankees will use the catcher, but I imagine they throw him right into the mix as relying on Austine Romine might not be prioritized.