Well this sucks. I have been looking forward to watching Gerrit Cole take the ball at Camden Yards on March 26 since Altuve’s homer landed back in October. Despite the disappointment, this should serve as a competitive advantage for the Yankees in the long run. Let’s take a look at how the two week delay affects each of our injured players.
Aaron Judge
Judge was never going to be a ready for March 26, and he likely won’t be ready for April 9 either. Judge should be getting a CT scan around March 19, and this will give us a better gauge on his status. If the rib is healed and he is able to resume baseball activities, it could allow him to be ready for game action around mid to late April. In an ideal scenario , Judge would only miss the first week of the season instead of the first three weeks. Even if Judge can’t play until early May, he will only miss three weeks of action, which isn’t a ton in the grand scheme of things. There is a small chance that Judge could be ready for game action on April 9, but I wouldn’t bet on that.
Giancarlo Stanton
The delayed season is a huge break for big G. Stanton was unlikely to be ready for March 26, but the two week delay may be just enough time for him to be game ready. Stanton is already taking live BP , so he should be good to go for April 9 assuming he has no set-backs. He now has a month to get ready for game action, which should be plenty. It’s a big if, but if Stanton doesn’t have any delays in the rehab process he should be a full go for opening day. With Judge likely not ready by then, expect to see Stanton in right field when the season starts.
James Paxton
Paxton recently said the earliest he would be ready would be mid-May. Obviously, Paxton was never going to be ready on March 26. This delay will certainly lessen the amount of games Paxton will miss. Let’s assume Paxton is ready to go for Memorial Day weekend. In this case, he will only miss six weeks of action instead of eight. It’s not a huge difference, but it is something. In terms of starts, he is essentially gaining three starts back that he wouldn’t have gotten.
Gary Sanchez
Gary is dealing with a sore lower back as well as the flu. He was supposed to be shut down until at least March 13, and now he will have plenty of time to recover. Nobody really knows if Gary would’ve been ready for March 26, but the consensus around the team was that it wouldn’t have been much of an issue. Any concerns around Gary missing the start of the season should be squashed with the delay. Expect to see number 24 behind the plate whenever the season starts.
Domingo German
German still has 63 games remaining on his suspension. He was originally eligible to be reinstated on June 5 if the season started on time. Now, let’s say the season begins April 9, he’d be back June 19
There is no guarantee that the season will start on April 9, and things could change abruptly. However, there is no denying that this delay will benefit the Yankees more than most teams given the injuries.
