Inside The Pinstripes

Luke Voit Takes Big Step Closer to Return From Knee Surgery

New York Yankees first baseman Luke Voit has resumed baseball activity, doing light fielding drills after undergoing knee surgery on a partial meniscus tear

Max Goodman

Help is on the way for the Yankees' offense. 

First baseman Luke Voit resumed baseball activity on Tuesday, a few weeks removed from undergoing surgery to repair a partial meniscus tear in his left knee. 

"He's able to start throwing and do some real light fielding this week with the hopes that he'll start introducing hitting and hitting off the tee starting next week," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said on Tuesday afternoon. "He's progressed really well to this point."

If everything goes according to plan, Voit could rejoin the team and make his regular season debut as early as next month. 

In his place, veteran Jay Bruce has started in 10 of the Yankees' first 12 games. As much as Bruce looked the part in spring training, earning a spot on the Opening Day roster, he's struggled out of the gates. 

After another hitless day at the plate on Wednesday, Bruce is now hitting .118 (4-for-34) with a team-leading 13 strikeouts. He's flashed the leather on occasion, but his reliability on the defensive side of the ball is still a work in progress as well.

Since acquiring second baseman Rougned Odor, Boone and the coaching staff have moved DJ LeMahieu over to first for a handful of games. Outfielder Mike Tauchman has also been spotted working out at first base quite a bit this spring, but hasn't been used at the position in a game just yet. 

Voit led the league with 22 home runs during last year's coronavirus-shortened campaign. Without the slugger, New York has struggled in the home run department to start the year, hitting just 13 through their first 12 games. 

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Max Goodman
MAX GOODMAN

Max Goodman covers the New York Yankees for Sports Illustrated and FanNation. Goodman has been on the Yankees beat for three seasons. He is also the publisher of Sports Illustrated and FanNation's Jets site, Jets Country. Before starting Inside The Pinstripes, Goodman attended Northwestern University and the Medill School of Journalism. He earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Broadcast Journalism and Master’s Degree in Sports Media, graduating in 2019. At school, Goodman was an anchor and reporter with NNN SportsNight and played on the club baseball team. While at Northwestern, Goodman interned with MLB.com as an associate reporter covering the Miami Marlins. He also interned with ESPN, working as an associate reporter on Mike Greenberg's Get Up. Goodman is from New York City. He grew up in Hell's Kitchen. Follow Goodman on Twitter @MaxTGoodman. You can connect with him via email by reaching out at maxgoodmansports@gmail.com.

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