The Kids Are Alright, But What If Alex Rodriguez Isn’t?

The New York Yankees have a history of downplaying injuries and when they have to they have been known to downright lie about them. That’s common knowledge these days with the fans and around the league so excuse me if I’m not jumping for joy because Aaron Hicks will miss “five or six games” and because Alex Rodriguez’s MRI on his oblique muscle came back “negative.” The New York Yankees are a team built on flexibility, durability and depth and the team is only getting two out of the three at this point in the season. The flexibility is still there with Dustin Ackley, Starlin Castro and others but does the team have the depth to survive such a catastrophe?

In a word, yes, but that’s only if the team has the guts to do it. The team has already announced, according to the New York Post anyway, that Aaron Judge would not be coming up whether Hicks and Rodriguez are seriously injured or not leaving a few less-than-desirable options. Nick Swisher likely leads the charge while Ben Gamel and Slade Heathcott top the list of candidates for the outfield position that are already on the 40 man roster. Mason Williams is still injured and players like Tyler Austin and Jake Cave seem like long shots in the organization right now.

New York could bring up a first baseman or an outfielder, or both really, if either of the injuries are deemed to be too serious. Mark Teixeira and Carlos Beltran are both DH candidates if Rodriguez cannot go for an extended period of time while the thought of Gary Sanchez taking at bats away from either from the right side intrigues me. That idea doesn’t likely intrigue the Yankees, especially after a sluggish start in spring training, but he’s on the 40 man roster and it’s an idea nonetheless.

The Yankees have plenty of bodies that can take the place of Hicks and Rodriguez and the good news for those bodies is that they don’t have much to live up to offensively at this moment. Sanchez, Heathcott or even Swisher could likely give the Yankees a jolt in the arm and in the lineup considering that if you add their batting averages together they are still looking like Stephen Drew but I don’t feel like either are sustainable replacements.

Aaron Judge is a sustainable replacement and the Yankees won’t call him up as the frustration amongst fans with the handling of the farm system continues. If they want to spend like the Tampa Bay Rays, and let’s remember before comparing payrolls that a ton of this money is still by the hands of George Steinbrenner and not Hal Steinbrenner, then act like the Rays. Think the Rays would hesitate to bring up a guy like Judge? Because I don’t.