Tuesday, April 23, 2019

Yankee Injury Update

On the team website, the Yankees issued the following update as to when the injured players should return:

* Gary Sanchez: Maybe tomorrow. He caught 5 innings in a rehab game for Class A Charleston last night, and Cashman hinted that he could be called up for the game in Anaheim tomorrow night. That sounds a little soon. I'd give him a full series at Double-A or Triple-A first. Maybe play him for Trenton tomorrow, and then the weekend for Scranton. Plus, the way that Austin Romine and Kyle Higashioka have played in his absence, there's no reason to rush El Gary back.

* Giancarlo Stanton: May. He is with the team on the Coast, and, according to Cashman, is "moving closer to on-field batting practice."

* Aaron Hicks: May. He is at the minor-league complex in Tampa, swinging a bat and throwing. Boone says he "probably isn't too far off from being ready to play in rehab games."

* Troy Tulowitzki: May. He's at the Tampa complex, taking batting practice and ground balls.

* Dellin Betances: May 25. He will be cleared to resume throwing on May 4, and Brian Cashman says he expects him to return "three weeks after that." So Hicks and Betances give us as close as we're going to get to clear short-term good news on any of these guys.

* Miguel Andujar: Not clear, since they don't yet know if he's going to have surgery on his shoulder. But they are encouraged by his progress, so he could return in May. If he decides to have surgery, though, he's out for the season.

* Aaron Judge: May, probably. Cashman says, "There is no timetable for Judge's return," but, "It will be more than two weeks." Two weeks from today would be May 7.

* Greg Bird: May or June. Given his foot injury, his poor hitting at the start of this season, and the rise of Voit, Bird's return is hardly a priority. We don't want him to be in pain, but having him on the Yankee roster, and fully able to play, wouldn't help much. He may be a career backup from this point onward, through little fault of his own.

* Ben Heller: June. The reliever had Tommy John surgery in April 2018, and is now throwing off a mound.

* Didi Gregorius: Sometime in the Summer. He's at the Tampa complex, taking batting practice and making infield throws. Cashman says his recover "has gone off without a hitch so far." He could be back in June. Then again, Cashman isn't exactly Joe Namath when it comes to making predictions.

* Luis Severino: July. With his recent rotator cuff setback, he's been shut down until May 21. If German can continue to pitch decently as a spot starter, this loss won't be all that big. If Sevy can come back the way he was, it will be a huge boost. Cue another Arsenal reference: It would be "like a new signing."

* Jordan Montgomery: July. He had Tommy John surgery in June 2018, and is working on building up his velocity in Tampa.

* Jacoby Ellsbury: Who knows. He's become the Carl Pavano of position players: Hurt the Yankees in postseason play for another team, came to the Yankees, helped a little, got hurt, and has barely played since. He hasn't played since October 2017, had hip surgery in August 2018, and has been limited to light running.

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This is also a good time to do a countdown update:

Days until Arsenal play again: 1, tomorrow, at 2:45 PM New York time, away to Wolverhampton Wanderers of the Birmingham area. Despite having advanced to the Semifinal of the UEFA Europa League, Arsenal laid an egg on Easter Sunday, losing 3-2 at home to a not very good team, Crystal Palace of South London, seriously denting their hopes of qualifying for next season's UEFA Champions League and finishing ahead of North London arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

Days until the New York Red Bulls play again: 4, next Saturday night at 7:00, at home, their 1st-ever competitive game against MLS expansion team FC Cincinnati.

Days until the next Yankees-Red Sox series begins: 37, on May 30, at Yankee Stadium II. (I previously had this incorrectly listed as being at Fenway Park.)

Days until the next Women's World Cup kicks off: 45,  on Friday, June 7, in France. Under 7 weeks. The U.S. team is 3-time and defending Champions.

Days until the Red Bulls next play a "derby": 46, on Saturday night, June 8, against the Philadelphia Union, at Talen Energy Stadium in Chester, Pennsylvania. The next game against New York City FC will be on Sunday night, July 14, at Red Bull Arena. The next game against the New England Revolution will be on Saturday night, August 17, at Red Bull Arena. The next game against D.C. United will be on Wednesday night, August 21, at Audi Field in Washington.

Days until the U.S. national soccer team plays again: 56, on Tuesday, June 18, at the brand-new Allianz Field in St. Paul, home of Minnesota United, in the opener of the 2019 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Exactly 8 weeks.

Days until the Yankees and Red Sox play each other in London: 67, on June 29. Under 10 weeks.

Days until Arsenal play in America: 83. Under 12 weeks. On July 15, they will visit the Denver suburbs to play the Colorado Rapids. On July 17, they will visit the Los Angeles suburbs to play Bayern Munich. On July 20, they will visit Charlotte to play AS Roma. And on July 23, they will visit the Redskins' stadium in the Washington suburbs to play Real Madrid. This almost certainly means no Emirates Cup this Summer.

Days until the next North London Derby: Unknown, as both Premier League matches, and a League Cup match, have been played this season. The next season starts on August 10, which is 109 days from now, but the PL never puts a Derby on the opening weekend. The Gunners and Spurs usually play each other in N5 in October or November, and then in N17 in February or March.

Days until Rutgers University plays football again: 130on August 31, home to the University of Massachusetts. A little over 4 months.

Days until East Brunswick High School plays football again: Unknown, because the 2019 schedule hasn't been released yet. Usually, the next season begins on the 1st Friday in September, which would be September 6, which would be 136 days. It has been announced that East Brunswick and its arch-rivals, Old Bridge, will no longer play each other on Thanksgiving Day. In fact, many of the local Thanksgiving rivalries have been moved back to the opening night, September 6. Whenever the Big Green play the Purple Bastards, it will be under a new head coach, because Bob Molarz, in charge for the last 6 seasons, has resigned.

Days until the New Jersey Devils play again: Unknown. Traditionally, a new NHL season begins on the 1st Thursday in October, which would be October 3, which is 163 days from now. The new schedule is usually released around June 20 or so. We shall see.

Days until the New Jersey Devils next play a local rival: Unknown. But the Devils never open against either the New York Rangers, a.k.a. The Scum; the New York Islanders; or the Philadelphia Flyers, a.k.a. The Philth.

Days until the next Rutgers-Penn State football game: 221, on Saturday, November 30, at Beaver Stadium in State College, Pennsylvania. A little over 7 months.

Days until my 50th Birthday, at which point I can join AARP and get discounts for travel and game tickets: 239, on December 18, 2019. Under 8 months.

Day until the premiere of the final Star Wars film, Episode IX: The Rise of Skywalker: 241, on December 20, 2019.

Days until the Baseball Hall of Fame vote is announced, electing Derek Jeter: 273on January 21, 2020. Under 9 months.

Days until the next Summer Olympics begins in Tokyo, Japan: 458, on July 24, 2020. Under a year and a half, or a little over 15 months.

Days until the next Presidential election, when we can dump the Trump-Pence regime and elect a real Administration: 560on November 3, 2020. A little over a year and a half, or under 19 months.

Days until a fully-Democratic-controlled Congress can convene, and the Republicans can do nothing about it: 621, on January 3, 2021. Under 2 years, or under 21 months.

Days until Liberation Day: 638at noon on January 20, 2021. Under 2 years, or under 21 months. Note that this is liberation from the Republican Party, not just from Donald Trump. Having Mike Pence as President wouldn't be better, just differently bad, mixing theocracy with plutocracy, rather than mixing kleptocracy with plutocracy.

Days until the next Winter Olympics begins in Beijing, China: 1,018, on February 4, 2022. Under 3 years, or under 34 months.

Days until the next World Cup is scheduled to kick off: 1,308, on November 21, 2022, in Qatar. Under 4 years, or under 43 months. The charges of corruption against Qatar may yet mean that they will lose the tournament, in which case it will be moved to a nation where it would not be too hot to play it in June and July.

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