Around the Empire: Yankees news - 4/6/23

MLB.com | Jim Callis: If you’re a regular reader of Pinstripe Alley — or even just Yankees media in general — then you probably read quite a bit about the organization’s top prospects over the course of the previous offseason. Since then, we’ve seen Anthony Volpe debut in the majors for the Yankees and Oswald Peraza start off the season at Triple-A, but what about everyone else in the Top 30? Rather than checking all the affiliates’ rosters, Callis has you covered in a convenient rundown that also features some injury updates.

NY Daily News | Gary Phillips: One of the highlights of the Yankees’ 4-2 start has been DJ LeMahieu looking much closer to his best self than he appeared in most of 2021 and down the stretch in 2022 as he dealt with a foot injury that sapped his power. It doesn’t matter if it’s April or September — a 1.014 OPS in almost a week’s work of games is good to see. LeMahieu was quick to point out that it’s of course still early, but also that he had “[forgotten] how good it felt to be normal” in contrast to battling through injuries.

For his part, manager Aaron Boone said that the Yankees would be proactive in giving LeMahieu enough rest days to hopefully keep him fresh for the full season, all while encouraging better soft tissue work.

ESPN | Joon Lee: LeMahieu’s little resurgence could also turn out to be big for the Yankees because fellow infielder Josh Donaldson had to leave yesterday’s game against the Phillies with right hamstring tightness. Both Boone and Donaldson didn’t seem to think that it was severe, but it was still sore after the game and Donaldson will have his hamstring reevaluated soon. No news yet on whether an IL stint will be needed.

Newsday | Anthony Rieber: The Aaron Hicks saga ain’t great, folks. He hasn’t looked great to start the season, the boo birds have been out in the Bronx, and he doesn’t seem particularly happy with his playing time. Boone has done his best to put on a brave face and defend Hicks’ ability to withstand the rancor, but for Rieber (and I’d wager many fans), the situation is simply untenable — even with the Yankees still owing him about $30 million for the rest of his extension. If they’re not even playing him in center field over Isiah Kiner-Falefa, then it’s the point of no return.

Trade him. Release him. Move on.

Lastly, there will be no baseball today. The Yankees were originally going to help the Orioles open up their home season in Baltimore today, but with bad weather in the forecast, the game has already been postponed to Friday. So tune back in then at 3:05pm ET!