New York Yankees

Yankees Chase Headley Day-to-Day with Stiff Back

Published Jun. 30, 2017 6:28 p.m. ET

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Yet another New York Yankees regular is unavailable due to injury, with starting third baseman Chase Headley day-to-day due to a stiff back.

The New York Yankees lineup was barely recognizable Sunday night in the final game of a four game set against the Boston Red Sox. Only four of the team’s regulars were healthy enough to play against their division rivals, with five of the other lineup spots going to bench players and minor leaguers.

First baseman Mark Texieria has been dealing with chronic neck and knee issues all season. Outfielders Aaron Hicks and Aaron Judge are both on the disabled list. Finally, Jacoby Ellsbury and Starlin Castro both were forced to leave Saturday’s 6-5 loss to Boston with a knee and hamstring issue respectively.

Both issues look to be pretty minor, but with so few games left, it’s unclear whether they will be able to play again this season. When asked about Castro coming back, Yankees manager Joe Girardi told reporters before Sunday’s game:

Girardi was similarly cagey about Ellsbury’s return:

The skipper’s pregame press conference also revealed that a third key member of the Yankees lineup suffered an injury Saturday, but didn’t tell anyone because he realized there was really no one to replace him.

Third baseman Chase Headley has had back problems dating back to his years with the San Diego Padres. It was one of the main concerns at the time when he signed his four year pact with New York, but thus far it hasn’t been much of an issue.

Apparently Headley’s lower back stiffened up during Saturday’s contest, but with Ronald Torreyes already in for the injured Starlin Castro and Rob Refsnyder out of the game, there were no infielders capable for handling third remaining on the bench. The issue was bad enough that he was unavailable to play Sunday night and there it is no guarantee he will be ready to return any time soon.

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The promotion of infielder Donovan Solano gives New York a little more infield depth, but if Headley misses more than a game or two, the team may have to dip into the Triple-A club’s roster for yet another call up.

Any sign of Headley’s chronic back issue flaring up is worrying for the Yankees. They owe the third baseman $26 million for his age 33-34 seasons, and have no real viable third base options in the upper-minors to replace him.

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