If Greg Bird’s right foot injury forces him to miss the start of the regular season, the Yankees appear to have a Opening Day replacement in mind.
According to NJ.com’s Brendan Kuty, manager Aaron Boone could call on righty Tyler Austin to start at first base against Blue Jays’ southpaw starter JA Happ on Thursday afternoon in Toronto. Boone also mentioned that veteran utility infielder Neil Walker could see playing time at the position, although it wouldn’t be a “straight platoon.”
“I feel more than capable of winning if Bird misses time,” Boone told NJ.com. “I think we’ll be fine, no matter what it is. We feel very good about the guys. If it’s Tyler that needs to step in there, obviously bringing Neil Walker in gives you flexibility. But as things come up over the course of the season, we feel pretty good if we go reach down even further and pull somebody up. We feel like we have depth that’s kind of knocking on the door of being big-league players. Sometimes it’s a war of attrition. In major-league sports, you’ve got to have depth because you can get clipped by the injury bug at some point. We feel like we can withstand it and we’re equipped to handle it.”
On Saturday, Bird was scratched from the Yankees’ split-squad game against the Atlanta Braves in Lake Buena Vista, Fla. due to soreness in his right foot. The team then conducted an MRI and CT scan on the 25-year-old, and results revealed inflammation in the foot.
According to the Yankees’ PR Department, Bird is scheduled to be evaluated by foot specialist, Martin O’Malley, in New York on Monday.Â
Although inflammation can be a big unknown (Bird was intially diagnosed with os trigonum inflammation last year, that led to surgery), the team is reportedly “at least a little optimistic” that Bird’s injury won’t be a long-term issue.Â
“Hopefully we’ll get some good answers [Monday],” Boone told NJ.com on Sunday.
“As I’ve mentioned, we feel like him being able to post and go out there on an everyday basis is the only thing keeping him from being a premium-type player. There’s a feeling that, I’m sure he was trying to grind through something. I do, yes. I feel for him. But hopefully it’s a short-term thing and it’s just a little bump in the road to start here.”
In 18 Grapefruit League games, Bird slashed just .154/.267/.231 with a double, a home run, and four RBI. According to NJ.com, Boone said he wouldn’t be surprised if Bird’s spring hitting woes were due to any sort of discomfort in his foot.
“I think it’s possible that if you’re not as strong as you should be on your front, it could complicate you a little bit mechanically. I think that’s a possibility,” Boone said.
Bird has been no stranger to the disabled list in his short playing career. On the final day of spring training last season, he suffered a severe right ankle injury after fouling a ball off his ankle. Although Bird was active for all of April, the injury ultimately required surgery in mid-July, and he was limited to just 48 regular season games. In 2016, Bird missed the entire season due to a shoulder injury.
If you want to connect with Tom Hanslin, email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter @tomhanslin.
