The Yankees’ bullpen is now on the injury report: righty Tommy Kahnle has right biceps tendonitis and is in the middle of a 10-day shutdown from throwing, which began Friday.
Manager Aaron Boone revealed that news on Sunday, saying that an MRI last week revealed the tendonitis, and the Yankees don’t want to rush him – but are hopeful he’ll be ready to go on March 30.
“We had it imaged and everything and there’s no change in his physical stuff and shoulder,” Boone said. “Just a little biceps tendinitis. So he should get through it in the next week and start ramping him up…we’ll be careful and not rush him, but it should keep him in line (for Opening Day).”
Kahnle, who signed a two-year, $11.5 million deal in December, made one appearance in the truncated 2020 season before needing Tommy John surgery and missing the rest of that year and all of 2021. He played for the Dodgers in 2022, but missed nearly four months with right forearm inflammation before returning in September and posting a 1.04 ERA in nine appearances (8 2/3 innings) down the stretch.
Speaking to the media himself Monday, Kahnle said that he had similar biceps tendinitis in 2018 and attempted to pitch through it, but wound up being sent to Triple-A due to ineffectiveness.
He believes this issue should take about a month to clear up, but even a month from last Friday puts him into the regular season, meaning he could start on the IL as he tries to ramp up through a full spring training.
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Thankfully for the Yankees, Ron Marinaccio is the only other member of the projected bullpen or candidates for that squad yet to appear in a game, but he pitched two simulated innings Saturday as he is eased back in from the shin injury that ended his 2022 season.
Without Kahnle, Clarke Schmidt could find himself as one of the eight men in the initial bullpen – Boone has said he could see the nominal starter “in a number of roles” – and that also may be good news for those on the bubble like Greg Weissert or Albert Abreu, the latter of whom is out of minor-league options.
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