DJ LeMahieu is Day to Day, Out of Yankees’ Lineup Again

The Yankees infielder initially hoped to play on Monday.
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DJ LeMahieu is out of the Yankees’ lineup again Monday after soreness in his right big toe forced him to miss Sunday’s loss to the Red Sox.

Aaron Boone said that the versatile infielder is day-to-day after testing revealed inflammation.

“It’s a little tricky, so he’s just gonna be getting basically treatments, hopefully get the right orthotics going, and hopefully create a little bit of relief for him,” Boone said. The manager added that the act of swinging has bothered LeMahieu over the last few days, particularly when the 34-year-old rotates on his back foot.

The Yankees are not considering an injured list stint for LeMahieu at this time – which means they’re playing short-handed – but the situation is fluid and could change. Boone said that LeMahieu won’t receive a cortisone shot at this time.

LeMahieu took a cortisone shot during the All-Star break, which alleviated the pain until recently.

On Sunday, LeMahieu downplayed the seriousness of his injury. The veteran said he expected to play Monday against the Rays, but Boone decided otherwise. Gleyber Torres will leadoff and play second with LeMahieu out of the lineup.

"Really, I don't anticipate this being an issue going forward," LeMahieu said, adding that “everyone's got something right now" and that his focus was on staying healthy for the rest of the season.

LeMahieu has quietly shined this year following a down 2021 campaign that saw him battle a sports hernia. Over 104 games, LeMahieu is slashing .279/.381/.417 with 12 home runs, 43 RBI, a 135 wRC+ and 3.5 WAR, per FanGraphs.

Aaron Judge (7.5) is the only Yankee with more WAR than LeMahieu.

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Gary Phillips
GARY PHILLIPS

A graduate of Seton Hall, Gary Phillips has written and/or edited for The Athletic, The New York Times, Sporting News, USA Today Sports’ Jets Wire, Bleacher Report and Yankees Magazine, among others. He can be reached at garyhphillips@outlook.com.