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The Yankees are in St. Louis to face the Cardinals in some more interleague play.
New #Yankees lineup: Gardner 7, Jeter 6, Ellsbury 8, McCann 2, Solarte 5, Suzuki 9, Roberts 4 Johnson 3, Whitley 1. Teixeira now sitting.
— Jorge Castillo (@jorgeccastillo) May 26, 2014
Mark Teixeira has been scratched from the lineup for some unknown reason. Brett Gardner, Derek Jeter, and Jacoby Ellsbury are at the top of the order, as usual. Brian McCann will bat cleanup, Yangervis Solarte and Ichiro Suzuki will follow. Brian Robers is at second and Kelly Johnson has entered the lineup as the new first baseman. Chase Whitley will have to bat once again, so that's fun.
If Tex is seriously hurt, it could pave the way for the Yankees to sign free agent Kendrys Morales as the regular first baseman. If they were to sign him, they would sacrifice their second-round pick, meaning their first pick would be 93rd overall. This is all unlikely to happen, at least just yet, but with Stephen Drew signed, the time to pick up Morales is now.
UPDATE:
Tex was scratched becAuse of stiffness in his wrist, girardi says. No tests scheduled.
— Daniel Barbarisi (@DanBarbarisi) May 26, 2014
Well, get ready to start worrying.
As for Carlos Beltran, he took 15 swings today and will do the same tomorrow. It's a good first step, but it's still too early to determine whether he'll be able to avoid elbow surgery.
According to Baseball America's minor league transaction tracker, the Yankees have signed reliever Ramon Benjamon to a minor league deal. Ben Badler decribes him as having "matchup relief potential based on his fastball/slider mix," which sounds right up the Yankees' alley. The bad news is that he's been derailed by injuries and, at the age of 26, hasn't pitched since 2011. He last appeared in Double-A and has a 3.76 ERA with a nice 8.3 K/9, but a troubling 4.4 BB/9.