Yankees' Anthony Rizzo showing signs of progress post-concussion
MIAMI — Anthony Rizzo is showing signs of progress after the Yankees placed him on the injured list with post-concussion syndrome on Aug. 3.
Rizzo played for about two months after a collision with the Padres’ Fernando Tatis Jr. likely caused the concussion in late May. While initial testing cleared Rizzo of a concussion, the issue cascaded as he experienced fogginess while enduring a career-worst slump.
On Thursday, Rizzo had a doctor’s appointment that involved retesting. Rizzo, who was in Miami with the Yankees on Friday, said that those tests showed the first baseman is moving in the “right direction.”
Rizzo is still week-to-week, but he has been keeping his body moving. He hopes to do more baseball activities in the next week. He has already played catch and worked out with medicine balls in the weight room. He’s able to run, too, though not too hard.
“Theoretically, I guess I was playing on this for two months,” said Rizzo, who added that he’s not worried about being able to ramp up quickly at the plate. “So if I think it’s gonna go away in a week, it’s wishful thinking. But there’s definitely signs of progress.”
Doctors told Rizzo there is no harm in him flying, a subject Rizzo asked about several times.
Rizzo is being treated with supplements, in addition to various brain exercises. When he went on the 10-day IL, he spoke about misjudging pitches and his reaction time being way off.
On Friday, Rizzo said that his reaction times have gotten better, per testing. He hopes to see continued improvement on that front.
“The thing is, we don’t know what my baseline was,” Rizzo said. “They just know that I was significantly slower than a normal person. So I think when we see that level off, probably two weeks in a row or completely symptom-free or whatnot, we’ll go from there.”
DJ day-to-day
DJ LeMahieu (calf) is day-to-day, according to manager Aaron Boone.
The infielder had some testing done Thursday that showed there’s no strain, but he experienced cramping later in the night. Still, LeMahieu was able to complete a full workout on Friday.
Boone said “we’ll see” when asked if LeMahieu could come off the bench Friday. The manager then added that that would likely only happen in an “emergency” situation.
Don’t count on Montas
With Nestor Cortes returning to the IL on Friday and the Yankees’ rotation depth thinning by the day, Boone was asked about Frankie Montas.
The right-hander is “in the middle of his throwing program” after undergoing offseason shoulder surgery, according to Boone, but the skipper didn’t have any significant updates.
Asked if he expects Montas to pitch this season, Boone said, “I don’t think so, but I don’t want to speak out of turn about exactly what might be coming up in the next few weeks.”
The Yankees acquired Montas from the A’s last season, even though they knew his shoulder was an issue. The impending free agent has made eight regular-season starts for the Yankees, recording a 6.35 ERA.
Severino starting
Boone also said that Luis Severino will start Tuesday in Atlanta, another product of the Yankees’ waning rotation depth.
The Yankees used an opener for the struggling Severino on Wednesday, but that didn’t help him. The righty allowed four earned runs over two innings against a bad White Sox team. Another impending free agent, Severino owns an 8.06 ERA this season, which he called “the worst year of my life in baseball.”
IKF feeling for Maui
Honolulu, Hawai’i, native Isiah Kiner-Falefa told the New York Daily News that he doesn’t know anyone who has been impacted by the wildfires that ravaged Maui. At the time of publication, the fires had claimed 55 lives, in addition to causing massive damage.
“It’s definitely sad,” Kiner-Falefa said, but his family is thankfully based out of O’ahu, which is a few islands over.
