Bird lands on DL, Ellsbury could be next
Just when the Yankees thought their injury woes were coming to an end, Greg Bird ended up on the disabled list with a bruised right ankle and Jacoby Ellsbury could wind up there too because of a bruised nerve in his left elbow suffered Monday.
The Bird news, while not unexpected, is especially discouraging, as even manager Joe Girardi admitted he had no idea when the first baseman would return from the 10-day DL.
“A bone bruise can take months and months to heal,” Girardi said before the Yankees thumped the Blue Jays, 11-5, on Tuesday in The Bronx. “Players deal
with them all the time. We felt like his ankle wasn’t working properly, and [Monday] was the first day I really noticed it.”
Bird’s struggles, though, have been obvious for virtually the entire season, since he fouled a ball off his ankle just as he was finishing up an excellent spring training.
The spring success never translated to the regular season, with Bird stumbling to a 6-for-60 start. Finally, the Yankees decided to take action.
“It just wasn’t getting better,” Bird said of the ankle after getting an MRI exam Tuesday. “It just never came around.”
In the meantime, Chris Carter started at first Tuesday, going 1-for-3 with a wlak and scoring twice. Carter hasn’t done well in a reserve role since joining the Yankees, but is hoping more consistent playing time will improve his production.
Rob Refsnyder was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to take Bird’s spot and could also see time at first, along with Austin Romine.
But Bird remains the long-term solution at the position.
“The idea for me is, obviously, we have a good team, and I think we have a chance to go really far into the season,” Bird said. “We want to get it right now and be ready to go for the long haul.”
And he doesn’t have any second thoughts about trying to fight through the injury.
“I never regret playing,’’ Bird said. “Guys go through things. I feel like I owe it to my teammates and myself to go out and try and play and figure it out.”
Ellsbury said he felt some improvement after crashing into the wall in center making a catch on Ryan Goins’ sacrifice fly that scored two runs Monday, but he won’t be back at least until the Yankees visit Chicago on Friday to play the Cubs.
Aaron Hicks took Ellsbury’s spot in center, going 2-for-5 with a tworun home run off starter Mat Latos. If Ellsbury winds up on the DL, Mason Williams would figure to be a likely replacement. Despite Williams’ ineffectiveness at the plate so far at SWB, he is an excellent defensive player and already is on the 40-man roster.