Grapefruit Juice: Curtis Granderson breaks forearm, down 10 weeks
Keep those cell phones charged, MLB general managers. Brian Cashman might be calling you sooner rather than later.
We focused on the aging Yankees when we hit The Bronx in last month's Pressing Questions, but the reasonably-spry Curtis Granderson was the first to take a shot in spring training. Granderson fractured his right forearm Sunday in his first at-bat of camp, courtesy of a J.A. Happ fastball, and is expected to miss 10 weeks.
[Baseball 2013 from Yahoo! Fantasy Sports: Join a league today!]
The Yankees don't have an obvious replacement for Granderson, their freshly minted left fielder. Brett Gardner and Ichiro Suzuki are settled in the other two slots. Unexciting non-roster options Matt Diaz and Juan Rivera are around, in addition to prospect Zolio Almonte. Maybe the Yankees will look at upgrading the spot for the first month or two, maybe not. There's no outfield help waiting in the DH spot, where Travis Hafner stands. (Anyone up for Soriano 2, Electric Boogaloo? Well, it's complicated.)
Fantasy owners need a new plan of attack for Grandy, who was a third-round selection in most leagues prior to the injury. Colleague Andy Behrens is slotting Granderson No. 20 in the outfield for the moment, between Matt Holliday and Desmond Jennings. I'm not as bullish on the broken Bronx Bomber, temporarily loading him at No. 32 (between Melky Cabrera and Carlos Beltran). As a general rule, I tend to be more skeptical about long-term injuries than the average roto player – and I don't like opening the season with roster baggage and maintenance, even if DL slots are in play. But I'm not dug in on anything yet (though I need a plan of attack before Auction No. 1, the competitive Hero Sandwich Pro-Am, on Monday night).
At least age is more or less on Granderson's side – he turns 32 in three weeks. He's still capable of being a three-category stalwart for four months or so. Let's discuss new ranking plans for The Grandy Man in the comments.
More news from the Yahoo! Sports Minute:
Other popular content on Yahoo! Sports:
• Curtis Granderson injury puts Yankees in a bind
• Danica Patrick quiets critics, leaves family beaming with Daytona 500 performance
• Potentially tragic heart condition sidelines top NFL prospect at combine
• Ronda Rousey wasn't the only star at UFC 157
