As if the injuries couldn’t get any worse for the New York Yankees, starting third baseman Gio Urshela went down with seemed like a significant injury on Tuesday night.
After being plunked on the left hand by a Diego Castillo fastball, Urshela was forced out of the game in the seventh inning on Tuesday night against the Tampa Bay rays. DJ LeMahieu moved over to third base and Luke Voit took over at first base while Gio was tended to in the clubhouse.
Immediately after he was hit, the injured hand began to swell up and turned black and blue indicating a potential fracture.
In an alternative universe where Urshela’s injury wasn’t simply a bruised hand, LeMahieu would be the starting third baseman and the Yankees would have to pray for good health during a potential run. However, losing their best defensive player and their star on the hot corner would have been catastrophic to the defensive quality of the infield and they would lose a significant bat in the lineup as well.
The major concern in regards to the hand was how quickly it swelled up and the immediate color change.
Check out the picture for below to see how swollen the hand actually was:
https://twitter.com/Zach_Edelman_/status/1176664494698840064
X-rays came back negative after the ailment and Gio was diagnosed with a bruised hand, he will likely miss a few days but should be back in the lineup soon.
Additional New York Yankees injury updates:
One of the more prominent injuries to the Yankees the past few weeks was the loss of starting catcher Gary Sanchez. After straining his groin sliding into second base, Sanchez was forced out of the game and his availability in the postseason was in jeopardy.
“Right now with everything I’ve done, I feel better,” Sanchez said after a full workout day at the Yankees’ minor league complex in Tampa on Monday. “Hopefully in the next few days, with all I have to do, and after working with the trainers, I can feel the way I feel now.”
Luckily, Sanchez is hopeful that he will be able to return for the playoffs and help his team move beyond the first round where they failed to succeed just a year ago. The Yankees need all of the firepower they can get in the batting order if they are forced to carry-on without Urshela’s abilities at the plate.