New York Yankees

Yankees confirm Miguel Andujar is done for the season

The Yankees have faced a ton of injuries this season, but only Miguel Andujar has lost all hope of returning during the 2019 season.

Miguel Andujar tried to return to the Yankees and play through his injured labrum, but the second year third baseman has failed in that endeavor. Instead, he’s going to go under the knife to repair the issue for good. That means the Yankees will play the rest of their 2019 campaign without last year’s Rookie of the Year runner-up.

The team announced Andujar’s decision during Wednesday’s double-header against the Orioles. The release also quashed any hope that he might return this season. The Yankees’ tweet bluntly declared that Andujar “is not expected to return this season.

There’s no question the Yankees will miss the player they hoped Andujar would be this season. His presence made it a lot easier for GM Brian Cashman to avoid making a big money free agency move for Manny Machado over the winter. No one inside the organization believes Andujar was equal to Machado as a player, but he certainly provided a lot more production for dollar in the eyes of the front office.

On the other hand, the Yankees won’t miss the player Andujar actually was this season in the slightest. He was clearly struggling to play through his injury. He was close to an automatic out for the team after returning from the Injured List. Losing a hitter who was scuffling to the tune of a .128 batting average with an OBP of .143 will actually give the Yankees offense a boost in the short-term.

Next: Yankees need to start worrying about Miguel Andujar

The bigger concern for the franchise will be getting Andujar healthy so he can return to the team next season as the impact player they know he can be. He’ll face a long rehabilitation period, but he should be able to make a full recovery well before the start of the 2020 season. None of this is good news for Yankees fans, but it at least provides some much-needed clarity about Andujar’s future.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *