Yankees set to get back key player in Didi Gregorius on Friday
The Yankees won’t be 100 percent for a few more weeks, but getting Didi Gregorius back is a huge step in the right direction.
Didi Gregorius is pretty good at tweeting out emoji ridden celebratory messages, but he’s even better at baseball. The Yankees need him back in the lineup as soon as possible. Fortunately for Aaron Boone and company, Gregorius is scheduled to rejoin the club on Friday in Seattle.
It’s safe to say he’s been missed by his manager. Boone called Gregorius the “heartbeat” of his team when he was asked about his return to the active roster. He expects the shortstop to help the team on the field and in the clubhouse.
In fairness to his teammates, the middle infield hasn’t exactly fallen apart in his absence. Gleyber Torres did a nice job filling in at shortstop when Gregorius first hit the disabled list. Then Brian Cashman swung a deal for Adeiny Hechavarria. All he’s done is play great defense and hit a huge home run to swing a game against the Athletics during his brief tenure with the Yankees.
Still, getting Gregorius back is going to give this team a huge lift. The lineup is far too right-handed dominant at the moment. Adding such an accomplished left hand bat to the middle of the order will make life much more difficult for opposing pitchers. It may take Gregorius a few games to get back up to speed, but expect him to start driving in meaningful runs again soon.
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Of course, getting him back isn’t the last piece of positive health news the Yankees expect to get within the next few weeks. Boone’s roster won’t be back to full strength until both Aaron Judge and Aroldis Chapman come off the DL. It’s unclear exactly when that will occur, but the organization is optimistic that both stars will be back in action before the postseason begins. Judge’s return, in particular, will do a lot to give Boone’s club a lift.
In the meantime, Yankee fans will have to settle for seeing Gregorius make his return. That’s a terrific consolation prize for everyone associated with the club.