Bronx Bomber Ball

News broke last night that the Yankees had made their first splash of the summer trade season by acquiring slugger Edwin Encarnacion from the Seattle Mariners. Encarnacion is the American League home run leader and will be a welcomed addition to the team he has hit well against over the course of his career. To many including myself, this trade was very fuzzy at first glance. The Yankees did not have a need to acquire an offensive player, especially when their pitching has been their weakness, thus far. Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton’s imminent returns further blurred the reasoning behind this trade. However, after further thought, I have come up with six implications that result from this trade, all of which help make sense of this move. Kathy Willens | AP

Remember when it seemed like someone was sustaining some sort of injury every night, and we could slowly and painfully feel our souls leaving our bodies as a result? Well, those days are over. With the activation of James Paxton this morning, the Yankees are slowly getting healthier. There has also been good news released about numerous other injured Yankees as well, so let’s dive right in. Chris O'Meara / AP

It is almost as though fans aren’t phased by it anymore. Over the course of the past month that baseball has been “in session,” the Yankees have accrued enough players on the Injured List to add up to $87 million worth of payroll as of April 7th.  They have also led MLB in the category of… most injured players.   The injury woes didn’t start with the season opener, either; we can’t forget that prior to the start of the 2019 season, Didi Gregorius underwent Tommy John surgery.   Dellin Betances has his shoulder issue, which started during Spring Training.   Aaron Hicks had, and continues to have, back problems.   Jacoby Ellsbury… we won’t even go there (or discuss the astronomical numbers he has cost the Yankees at this point).   Luis Severino, devastatingly, suffered a shoulder injury during Spring Training, which changed the outlook for the starting rotation that already had to regroup -- thanks to the previously-accounted for absence of C.C. Sabathi...

Death, taxes, and injured Yankees, w ell, at least that’s what it feels like.   The latest to succumb to the 2019 injury bug is first baseman Greg Bird with a plantar fascia tear.   At the break of the news, Bird was placed on the 10-day IL, but after some review it seems the injury is more severe than originally expected.   An injury of this nature will likely sideline Bird for at least a couple months, if not more.   Although past injuries that Bird has suffered are not related, it’s worth mentioning that Bird has played just 140 major league games since 2015.   Photo Credit: NY Post

Coming off a very frustrating opening weekend where they dropped two of three games to the Baltimore Orioles, and following the bad injury news the received Monday afternoon, the Yankees sought to get back in the win column Monday night against the Detroit Tigers. The Tigers split their opening series with the Toronto Blue Jays despite scoring just six runs in four games, so Monday night presented an opportunity to get back in the win column against an inferior opponent. The Yankees did just that, securing a 3 – 1 win behind a solid outing from Domingo German and shutdown relief out of the bullpen . Credit: Julie Jacobson/AP Photo

Over the past few seasons, the Yankees’ infield has undergone a significant transformation. The old guard of veterans is gone and has been replaced by confidant young guns, two of which were finalists for the 2018 Rookie of the Year award. While many of the same names from the end of last year are returning, there are some new faces in the fold that are looking to stake their claim for a role. The unfortunate injury that will force Didi Gregorius to miss a significant portion of the season will also play a role in how Aaron Boone deploys his infielders this season. Let’s look at them position by position. Credit; Elsa/Getty Images

All eyes are on first base. No, really, they are.   At least, from a fan and reporter perspective, we’re all waiting to hear who is going to get the job of regular play at first base: Greg Bird , or Luke Voit ? Photo credit: Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

As the Yankees begin play in Tampa, several key situations heading into the season will be decided in the coming weeks. In an offseason which did not see Manny Machado or Bryce Harper land in the Big Apple, the Yankees did, however, introduce several new faces, with former All-Stars James Paxton, Troy Tulowitzki, and DJ LeMahieu leading the pack. While the focus of the season is to avenge Boston’s World Series win and take home a 28th chip of their own, here are some things to keep an eye on out of camp before baseball returns to the Bronx. Photo Credit: SNY

While the Yankees may have missed out on the free agent market’s biggest names this Winter, the team landed a pretty nice consolation prize when it signed infielder DJ LeMahieu back in January. The contract, which spans two years, and will cost New York $24 million, looks like a potential steal for the ball club. Photo Credit: Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post

Major League Baseball’s deadline for teams and arbitration-eligible players to exchange salary figures for the upcoming season was this past Friday, January the 11th. The Yankees had nine eligible players on the roster and were able to come to terms with eight of them – the lone exception being ace RHP Luis Severino. Photo Credit: Adam Hunger/USA TODAY Sports

The Yankees have reached an agreement with free agent infielder DJ LeMahieu, according to multiple reports. The reported contract is for two years and $24 million. LeMahieu, who won a batting title in 2016 and Gold Gloves in 2014, 2017 and 2018, has spent the majority of his career with the Colorado Rockies. Source confirms: Free-agent second baseman DJ LeMahieu heading to #Yankees on two-year deal. Believed to be in $24M range. First reported: @JackCurryYES . — Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) January 11, 2019 The Yankees plan to use LeMahieu as a versatile player around the infield. They will use him at second base, first base and third base. — Jack Curry (@JackCurryYES) January 11, 2019

For the third consecutive season, I’m going to be taking a stab at who I believe is primed for a bounce back season for the New York Yankees.   Many key Yankees underperformed by their own standards in 2018, and some just flat out stunk, w hether it be due to injury, general underperformance, or perhaps something else altogether.  With the team's sights set firmly on #28, who is in best position to redeem themselves in 2019?   Photo Credit: New York Yankees (via Twitter)

The Yankees’ offseason started in October. While that’s only two months ago, to Yankees fans, it feels as though it’s been longer. Why? I can’t speak for all Yankees fans, but based on my own feelings as well as what I’ve read on Yankees Twitter and heard from angry callers on WFAN… it’s safe to say that we’re losing confidence in our front office. And the buck stops with Brian Cashman. Photo Credit: SportingNews

*Editor's note: A prior version of this article appeared stating that Yangervis Solarte was a free-agent this Winter.  Solarte's option was declined by the Blue Jays but he remains under team control through this season under arbitration eligibility* ‘Tis the season! The most wonderful time of the year is upon us, whether you’d like to associate that with the holidays or the hot stove. This time of year wouldn’t be complete, of course, without the annual chaos of Black Friday. While millions of Americans scramble to make the most of their money and take advantage of great deals this weekend, MLB front offices will likely be doing the same on the free agent market. With that, let’s take a look at some cost-effective free agents who should most definitely be on the Yankees’ radar. Credit: Denis Poroy/Getty Images

The Yankees have failed to solidify the first base position ever since Mark Teixeira retired after the 2016 season. Over the last three seasons, New York has gotten nowhere near the production the 2015 All-Star Teixeira gave them. That year, he slashed .255/.357/.548 with 22 doubles, 31 home runs, and 79 RBI before his season was cut short to a broken leg. Many believed 2011 fifth-round pick Greg Bird was the solution at first base as he tore up the minors in 2013-2015, leading to a mid-August call up to the bigs in 2015. Bird started 44 games in August and September amid some Teixeira injuries, and he hit .261 with 11 homers and 30 RBI.

I get it. The Yankees are a 90-win team and only need to go 10-6 in their last 16 games to win 100 games, a feat accomplished just over 100 times since 1892. There are 20+ fanbases in the sport that have it worse off than the Yankees, and it is a very feasible argument that if it wasn’t for the Red Sox historic success, the skepticism surrounding the Bronx Bombers would be minimal. Photo Credit: Newsday

The Yankees ended their nine-game road trip in aggravating fashion Wednesday with a 3-1 loss at the hands of the lowly Minnesota Twins. Somehow, New York went 4-6 against three AL Central teams (Chicago, Detroit and Minnesota) with records well under .500 over the last two weeks. With the loss, the Yankees are now only one game up on the Oakland Athletics for the top Wild Card spot. This is extremely concerning considering Oakland has a much easier schedule down the stretch. Photo Credit: Jim Mone/AP Photo

On a cool, cloudy afternoon in The Bronx, the Yanks dominated the Blue Jays, 10-2, to close out a three-game sweep of their divisional foe. After a rough start to the week, the Yankees got back on track this weekend with the sweep of Toronto. In doing so, they closed out their home stand with a 4-3 record. Photo Credit: Noah K. Murray/USA Today Sports

The Yankees played less than seven innings on Friday night in the Bronx, but it was enough to secure a win due to the rain-shortened game. Lance Lynn pitched his worst start in a Yankees uniform with three walks and five earned runs in just four innings. Neil Walker and Giancarlo Stanton both hit home runs to propel the Bombers to a game one win against Toronto.   Photo Credit: Elsa/Getty Images

If you watched Thursday afternoon’s debacle of a ninth inning, you are rightfully angry that Greg Bird swung at the first pitch with the bases loaded and nobody out and fouled out. While Bird has had a few injury-stunted seasons, it has become clear that he is a below-average hitter. Credit: Jim McIsaac/Newsday