New York Yankees veteran third baseman DJ LeMahieu is dealing with a calf strain and is expected to miss “a couple of weeks,” he told the New York Post Thursday.
The severity of the strain is not completely clear, but LeMahieu disclosed that is either a Grade 1 or 2. A conversation with team doctors must take place before cementing the grade of the strain.
The 36-year-old tweaked the area in just his second at-bat of spring training on Saturday, which continues a seemingly non-stop onslaught of injuries that have derailed the back-half of his career.
He missed 26 games in 2023 and nearly 100 games last year due to lower-leg injuries, which have contributed to his nosedive in production. After winning a batting title during the COVID-shortened 2020 season with a .364 averages, LeMahieu has battled just .252 with a .698 OPS over the last four years.
A complete non-factor last season, he batted a measly .204 in 67 games.
His absence throws another wrench into an already uncertain third-base situation in the Bronx. The Yankees do not have a clear-cut starter, and LeMahieu was a part of the competition with Oswaldo Cabrera and Oswald Peraza.
LeMahieu still has two years and $30 million left on his current deal with the Yankees, who may feel so inclined as to go out and acquire another option for the hot corner on the trade market.
