Yankees utility man DJ LeMahieu is reportedly dealing with some quad tightness at the moment, as per The Athletic’s Brendan Kuty. Boone said that he’s considered day-to-day, so hopefully, the team doesn’t lose LeMachine for too much time, as it’s a night-and-day difference when he’s in the lineup. The Yankees have been bitten by the injury bug early on this season, so maybe that means that they’ll stay healthy as the month’s roll by — it’s good to have hope.
DJ LeMahieu shouldn’t be out for long, and I wouldn’t be surprised if his sitting out today is nothing more than being cautious. He’s been off to a fantastic start this season, and hopefully, this injury isn’t something that sets him back. For all I know, he could be back in the lineup, and Boone is just playing this one safely.
DJ is starting off the year on the right foot for the Yankees:
To start the 2023 season, LeMahieu is slashing .263 / .333 / .500, good for a very solid .833 OPS. He’s smacked a HR, four doubles, and a triple as well, to boot. Having him healthy is a must for this team, and as we’ve been saying with the recent injury news, I’d prefer he get hurt now than in August. His 130 wRC+ is right in line with how he was doing in the first half of last season, so that is a great sign for the utility stud.
This team is a different team when he’s healthy and on, and he’s also been doing a fantastic job manning 3B full-time. In just 44.0 innings at the hot corner, he’s got 2 DRS and 1 OAA, as he’s on pace for a very reminiscently dominant season on the defensive side of things to last year. LeMachine has to stay healthy if this team wants a shot to win it all, so hopefully, this quad tightness is nothing more than tightness.
Should, God forbid, DJ LeMahieu miss an extended period of time, IKF and Oswaldo Cabrera would be the two guys that see reps at third base. IKF has started this season off on a slow pace, but maybe some more reps will allow for him to get into some sort of groove. As for Oswaldo, the man can play every position extremely well and plays every spot with a smile.
Last year he was elite before his injury:
I don’t believe this injury should cause the major concern and worries that it is going to. Fans have a tendency to overreact to Yankees injury updates, as it’s been a pattern for some time now that players get hurt as the season kicks off. LeMahieu shouldn’t land on the IL, and Boone said he’s not concerned about the injury.
Last year, DJ was solid on the whole season, despite falling off a cliff when he hurt his toe. If one were to look at his first-half numbers, they’d see that the MVP candidate from a few years back is still there. In the first half last season, he posted a 132 wRC+ with a .786 OPS in 83 games, compared to an 86 wRC+ with a .635 OPS in the second half in just 42 games played.
He’s also been lifting the ball more to kick off this season, as he’s posting a 36.0% FB% so far. That figure, if the season ended today, would go down as a career-best for DJ, so ideally, he can keep that up as the games begin to roll along. DJ is an integral part of this lineup on both sides of the ball, and hopefully, he’s back sooner than later. Again, this could just be precautionary, and DJ may even be back in the LU in no time.