<archive>The Yankees will be without Hideki Matsui for an extended period time, perhaps for the whole season, after the left fielder broke his wrist while diving for a ball in last night's game with the Red Sox. Matsui will have surgery on the wrist today. He will be out of action for at least three months, and as GM Brian Cashman said today in the New York Post, he could be out the rest of the year.
As you can imagine, the wrist is one of, if not the most, integral body part when making a swing at a pitch. Matsui is regarded as one of the tougher Yankees (he has played in every single game since coming over from Japan), but he has not had to go through this kind of injury. The Yankees are already without Gary Sheffield, who is on the disabled list with a bruised left hand.
For the time being, the Yankees will use in-house substitutes for Matsui and Sheffield in the outfield. Bubba Crosby is expected to receive the bulk of the playing time in left field, while Melky Cabrera and Bernie Williams will man right field most of the time. Williams has been used primarily as a DH, but he is needed more now in the outfield. That means Andy Phillips could get some starts at first base, with Jason Giambi moving to the DH slot. The team is also expected to recall outfielder Kevin Reese from Triple-A Columbus to replace Matsui on the roster, but Reese isn't expected to receive much playing time as a starter.
Of course, since it is the Yankees, everyone assumes that they will make a trade to shore up their outfield depth. Alfonso Soriano's name is already being tossed out there. His teammate, Jose Guillen, is a free agent after this year and is a legit possibility. The Phillies might be willing to trade Bobby Abreu, but they would likely ask for a top-of-the-line starter in return, something the Yankees can't afford to give up (nor is it something they really have outside of Randy Johnson). Torii Hunter is also a possibility, especially if the Twins fall even further behind.
Whoever it may be, don't expect Cashman and George Steinbrenner to sit idle if the team begins to struggle.</archive>
As you can imagine, the wrist is one of, if not the most, integral body part when making a swing at a pitch. Matsui is regarded as one of the tougher Yankees (he has played in every single game since coming over from Japan), but he has not had to go through this kind of injury. The Yankees are already without Gary Sheffield, who is on the disabled list with a bruised left hand.
For the time being, the Yankees will use in-house substitutes for Matsui and Sheffield in the outfield. Bubba Crosby is expected to receive the bulk of the playing time in left field, while Melky Cabrera and Bernie Williams will man right field most of the time. Williams has been used primarily as a DH, but he is needed more now in the outfield. That means Andy Phillips could get some starts at first base, with Jason Giambi moving to the DH slot. The team is also expected to recall outfielder Kevin Reese from Triple-A Columbus to replace Matsui on the roster, but Reese isn't expected to receive much playing time as a starter.
Of course, since it is the Yankees, everyone assumes that they will make a trade to shore up their outfield depth. Alfonso Soriano's name is already being tossed out there. His teammate, Jose Guillen, is a free agent after this year and is a legit possibility. The Phillies might be willing to trade Bobby Abreu, but they would likely ask for a top-of-the-line starter in return, something the Yankees can't afford to give up (nor is it something they really have outside of Randy Johnson). Torii Hunter is also a possibility, especially if the Twins fall even further behind.
Whoever it may be, don't expect Cashman and George Steinbrenner to sit idle if the team begins to struggle.</archive>
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