Anthony Rizzo officially shut down for the rest of 2023

The New York Yankees will wrap up their melancholic 2023 season without their star first baseman. According to Aaron Boone, the team will tread carefully and shut down Anthony Rizzo for the rest of this campaign.

Rizzo’s season had been going so well early on, as he continued his 32-homer form from 2022 that earned him a new two-year, $40 million contact by batting .304/.376/.505 with 11 long balls and a 145 wRC+ through the end of May. But he took a drastic turn in production on May 28th, when suffered a pretty nasty collision with Fernando Tatis Jr. at first base.

After the incident, Rizzo kept playing for quite a while, despite truly awful numbers and presenting symptoms. It wasn’t until August that the team shut him down with post-concussion syndrome. As Josh chronicled at the time, the entire handling of the situation was subpar, to say the least. Now, regardless of the outlook of the team’s 2023 season, it feels like the responsible move to shut Rizzo down and err on the side of caution.

The recovery process hasn’t undergone any significant setbacks for Rizzo, but he’s yet to be cleared to play, and with only a few weeks left before the end of the season, the Yankees will shut him down.

Rizzo will be back with the club as he is under contract with the Yankees for next season, with an option for the 2025 campaign. Meanwhile, DJ LeMahieu will continue to serve at first in Rizzo’s absence, with Jake Bauers backing him up.