Key Yankees player has Aaron Boone knocking on wood
TAMPA — Yankees manager Aaron Boone reached out with his left hand, knocking twice on the bench in the first-base dugout at Steinbrenner Field on Thursday afternoon.
This topic means too much to him and his team in 2023. The superstitious skipper wasn’t messing around.
Boone had been asked a question about DJ LeMahieu, an infielder that’s quietly having a strong spring, distancing himself from an injury impacted his ability to produce at the end of last season.
“It’s been great,” Boone said after tapping twice on the hardwood. “We’ve had really a few months now with zero issues. We’re paying attention to it always, forcing him to make sure he’s on top of it, even more so than he normally would be.”
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Beginning in early August, LeMahieu was sabotaged with a fracture in his right big toe and ligament damage in his second toe. After trying to play through the injury, with his numbers plummeting, LeMahieu landed on the injured list, missing virtually all of September. He returned at the very end of the regular season but was left off the Yankees’ playoff roster.
“It was a really difficult time,” LeMahieu told NJ Advance Media on Thursday. “It was really hard. It’s hard to not be out there. It’s hard to not be able to help during the most important part of the year. To not be able to be out there, it’s a terrible feeling. Just one of those things where everything I did wasn’t helping.
“I don’t want that to happen ever again.”
LeMahieu ended up avoiding surgery this winter, returning to a clean bill of health with rest and rehab. He had his first pain-free at-bats since last August earlier this month when he kicked off his slate of Grapefruit League action. A few weeks later, he’s hitting .364 (8-for-22) with one home run, four runs scored, three RBI and a .962 OPS, looking like himself at the plate with less than two weeks to go until Opening Day.
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That home run came in Tuesday’s blowout win over the Blue Jays in Tampa, a missile that soared onto the second deck in right-center field.
“That ball was absolutely crushed,” Boone said. “The signs continue to be encouraging.”
It goes without saying that a healthy LeMahieu would do wonders for this team this season. LeMahieu is only a few years removed from winning the second batting title of his 12-year career, leading the league with a .364 batting average during the pandemic-shortened season. Boone thinks that LeMahieu actually makes slugger Aaron Judge better as well, setting the reigning Most Valuable Player up for more success with quality at-bats while hitting in front of him in the leadoff spot.
“Aaron Judge was the MVP of the league last year, I don’t need to go through the season he had, but I think lost in a lot of that is just how good DJ was hitting in front of that season,” Boone explained. “Hitting before him and the kind of at-bat quality he was having … he’s such a good hitter, such a smart hitter, such a patient hitter.”
LeMahieu chuckled when he was told that Boone thinks he played a key role in Judge’s MVP campaign.
“We talk hitting all the time, but I don’t think I had a whole lot to do with what he did last year,” LeMahieu said. “I definitely love hitting before him.”
A humble LeMahieu won’t admit it, but Boone has a point. When he’s right, LeMahieu rarely strikes out, he works deep into counts and gets on base with a high walk rate, low chase rate and elite ability to put the ball in play. Like managing general partner Hal Steinbrenner said earlier this week, this team has championship potential, but the key is staying healthy. LeMahieu is a big part of that.
“When everyone’s healthy, we’re rolling. That’s for sure,” LeMahieu said. “Health is key for us. If we’re all healthy and moving in the same direction, we’re going to be in a really good spot.”
