TORONTO – Eight days after losing Aaron Judge to injury, the Yankees might be down another outfielder. Trent Grisham exited Friday’s 8-5 loss to the Blue Jays at Rogers Centre with right hamstring tightness, and he could be headed for the injured list.
Grisham slowed between first and second base after hitting a two-run single off Mason Fluharty, taking the extra bag on the throw and sliding in safely on a play that cut Toronto’s lead to two runs at the time.
The Blue Jays challenged the call, and when the safe call was confirmed, Grisham was already in the visitors’ dugout. Pinch-runner Max Schuemann replaced him at second base.
“It’s too early to tell,” Grisham said. “Any injury is frustrating. We’ll see where it wakes up tomorrow. Hopefully it’s good news, but we’ll see.”
Grisham has been one of the Yankees’ most productive hitters following a slow start to his season, batting .370 (27-for-73) with two homers and eight RBIs in his past 19 games through Friday.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Grisham will be re-evaluated early Saturday.
Should the Yankees need to place Grisham on the injured list, Jasson Domínguez could be activated from his Minor League rehab assignment.
Domínguez is currently rehabbing with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he homered Friday in a 6-3 loss to Lehigh Valley.
“There’s a chance we’d bring him up, depending on Grish,” Boone said. “We’ll see what we have overnight and in the morning, but Jasson could be in play.”
Boone said before Friday’s game that the team planned to have Domínguez play seven to nine innings on both Friday and Saturday before re-evaluating.
Spencer Jones is already getting an opportunity in the outfield as the Yankees handle the absence of Judge, who is expected to be re-evaluated in mid-July as he recovers from a stress fracture in his first right rib.
“You never like key guys going down, of course, but in a long season that’s unfortunately part of it sometimes,” Boone said. “We’ll weather it and look forward to getting more and more guys back in the mix.”