George Lombard Jr. remained without a return date entering Tuesday’s game against the Los Angeles Angels. The rookie shortstop has missed the Yankees‘ last two games with right knee discomfort.
An MRI on Sunday revealed no structural damage. Manager Aaron Boone has labeled the injury day-to-day. Jose Caballero has started at shortstop in Lombard’s absence.
The Yankees dropped the series opener to the Angels, 10-1, on Monday. Los Angeles snapped a seven-game losing streak with the win.
Before Tuesday’s second game against the Angels, Boone gave the latest update on Lombard.
Aaron Boone Provides Latest Update on George Lombard Jr.
Boone spoke with Talkin Yanks ahead of Tuesday’s game. He said Lombard will not start Tuesday again. But Boone said Lombard ran and took ground balls Monday. He does not expect an injured list stint. Still, Boone stopped short of ruling one out.
An injured list move remains possible if the knee does not improve. Expanded rosters give New York more flexibility to wait. That reduces pressure to rush Lombard back too soon.
Aaron Boone Also Shared Updates on Others
Boone also addressed several other roster moves with Talkin Yanks. Ryan McMahon and John Schreiber will join the active roster Tuesday. Both moves come with the Sept. 1 roster expansion.
McMahon has been out since Aug. 19 with a left thumb sprain. He played rehab games at Double-A Somerset before rejoining the team. The Yankees claimed Schreiber off waivers from the Kansas City Royals Monday. He posted a 3.65 ERA in 55 appearances with the Royals this season.
Boone said Clarke Schmidt will make his second rehab start Wednesday. Schmidt is recovering from a second Tommy John procedure. He is building up as a reliever for Somerset. In his first rehab outing, he struck out two. He allowed two runs on two hits over two-thirds of an inning.
Boone confirmed Ben Rice will lead off again Tuesday. It marks his first back-to-back leadoff assignment since mid-June. Rice batted leadoff in Monday’s loss as well. He leads the Yankees in RBIs, home runs, runs and hits this season.
Gerrit Cole starts for New York against Grayson Rodriguez on Tuesday. The Yankees enter the game 4.5 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East.
Yankees Announce George Lombard Jr. Update Amid Angels Series