Yankees general manager Brian Cashman’s media availability was delayed from just before Monday’s game until about two-thirds of the way through – further fueling speculation that something was amiss, perhaps with Aaron Judge, who was not in the lineup again for Monday’s spring finale.
However, Aaron Boone revealed in the fifth inning of the game that Judge was simply under the weather and would be good to go for Opening Day, and Cashman reiterated that when he spoke shortly after.
“Going through spring training in the COVID environment, any issue that’s conveyed you react larger to, so we sent him through protocols,” Cashman said. “But thankfully, he’s fine, and was smart enough to share. He hasn’t been feeling great the last couple days – the pollen down here in Florida is bad at times, and it gets the best of all of us sometimes. He’s not the first to deal with it and is not the last.”
A couple other injury and roster notes from Cashman:
-Justin Wilson will begin the season on the injured list, as he “still has a couple hurdles to clear” as he overcomes the left shoulder tightness that caused him to leave last Monday’s game early.
“He’s doing well, but because he’s a pitcher, we mapped out that getting all his bullpens and live sessions will bleed into the season,” Cashman said. “Physically he feels like he can go, but in terms of making sure we get him finished off properly, we’re not going to have Opening Day dictate that timeline. We need to make sure he checks all the boxes along the way. He did a bullpen today and feels good, but he has a few more hurdles to clear, and he’ll be put on the I.L. retroactive when the roster is due.”
-Luke Voit was scheduled to have surgery Monday night to repair his torn meniscus, with the procedure to be performed by Dr. David Altchek at the Hospital for Special Surgery in New York.
-No official timeframe for Zack Britton yet – Cashman hoped it was “late-May or early-June” but things are “going well.”
-Cashman has yet to be vaccinated for COVID-19, and much of the team is still waiting as well because of eligibility restrictions, but the GM hopes “we clear that hurdle soon.”
“Most of our personnel are not, because the eligibility hasn’t been there – but it seems like every day, there’s a new, lower bar, so we’re patiently waiting for those bars to be cleared. We’re all excited to clear that hurdle too, we just have to wait our turn. We know things are coming sooner or later as things are opening up around the country.”
-Both Michael King and Tyler Wade have officially made the roster, which Cashman says “sets the roster at 25 with a 26th final decision that will be made here at some point, basically to replace Wilson.” Also, “Mike Tauchman was never leaving unless I found a deal that made sense for him to leave.”
-Derek Dietrich and Robinson Chirinos, who were both released from their minor-league deals this past weekend, have agreed to re-sign and go to the Alternate Site, but the Yankees have indeed released RHP Jhoulys Chacin. Chirinos had surgery to repair his fractured wrist recently, and Cashman said he “feels really good” but doesn’t have a timeframe other than “it’s usually four to six weeks with a bone issue.”
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