There may be a rift growing between Aaron Boone and Gary Sanchez. The Yankees manager isn’t happy with his catcher’s physical fitness.
It’s pretty obvious to anyone who watches Gary Sanchez play baseball that he isn’t the most svelte player in the league. Evidently Aaron Boone has noticed as well. The Yankees manager is very concerned with how Sanchez will stay in shape while he’s on the disabled list.
Sanchez is currently expected to miss somewhere around a month with a groin injury. He pulled up lame trying to beat out a double play in Tampa. The talented catcher immediately grabbed his groin after crossing first base making it pretty obvious he was headed to the DL.
Boone is confident Austin Romine can fill his role in the meantime, but instead he is concerned about how quickly Sanchez can get back up to speed once he comes off the shelf. Specifically, it’s going to be a challenge for Sanchez to keep his weight down, and his cardiovascular fitness up, while he’s dealing with a leg injury.
Aaron Boone on Gary Sanchez's DL stint: "Maybe it's a time that we make sure he's staying proactive with the conditioning, so that when he does come back he's in the best possible place so that he can be physically sound the rest of the way."
— Bryan Hoch ⚾️ (@BryanHoch) June 25, 2018
It seems the Yankees are going on the offensive to put pressure on Sanchez to do everything he can to stay fit during his injury absence. Sports science has come a long way in recent years, so there are things he can do that won’t aggravate his groin/hip. The real issue is whether or not Sanchez will be willing to fully commit to these measures.
If he does, he has every chance in the world of coming off the DL and going right back into Boone’s starting lineup. If he doesn’t aggressively engage in his rehabilitation process it’s possible this injury could lead to other issues. Being a major league catcher is torture on the body. If Sanchez tries to perform at a high level when he’s not in shape, it’s easy to see a variety of other injuries popping up as the season progresses.
Next: Sanchez injury comes at a bad time for the Yankees
What’s clear is that Boone isn’t going to accept anything less than maximum effort for Sanchez while he’s on the DL. That’s why he’s already using the press to put pressure on his talented slugger. It’s a veteran move by the rookie manager.