I am a big fan of Anthony Rizzo. When the Yankees resigned him, forgoing Matt Chapman and Freddie Freeman this past free agency, I was excited. His start with the Yankees in 2021 was very lackluster, contracting Covid and then trying to make up for lost time. But from the start of the 2022 season, Rizzo has been a great and essential addition to the Yankees—filling a big void at first base which traditionally been held by strong defenders and big bats. More recently, however, Rizzo has been sidelined with back issues followed by more back issues and migraines due to treatment of the the back issues. Sunday, expect Rizzo to start baseball activities, but not quite ready for the rubber game against the Rays, a must win game for the Yankees. The return of the Rizz is critical for the Yankees. Waiting too long will be too little too late for this team.
"He had a blood patch yesterday [Friday], which so far has been deemed really successful," manager Aaron Boone said before Saturday's game against the Tampa Bay Rays. "Immediately, they had him moving around and walking, and I think it freed him up right away. Headaches are gone so far. And if he's still in this position tomorrow [Sunday], we'll start ramping up. But he's really excited about how good he feels," reported ESPN. Ramping up does not mean necessarily he will play anytime soon, but there is a possibility that we could see Rizzo return to the lineup later this week.
"We'll see," Boone said when asked about a timeline for Rizzo. "He's been basically laying down for a while. At the back end of the trip (against Boston) it may be possible. But it'll kind of depend on how the ramp-up goes. Hopefully, we've gotten through what we need to, and now we can start building that process. We'll just pay attention to how he's doing and how long it takes him to get rolling."
Rizzo's stats, although not as impressive as they look, provide a decent offensive contribution from the first baseman. Batting .225, Rizzo has 30 home runs and 71 RBIs. His best batting average was in 2019, when the Rizzo hit .293 but only had 27 home runs. Playing in New York has definitely been an advantage for the Yankees left hander but he needs to be healthy. Rizzo has been sidelined this time around since August 30th. He had two other stints to the IL for the same back issue.
The backup at first base is currently rookie Oswaldo Cabrera, with DJ LeMahieu on the IL due to lingering right toe injury. Although Cabrera is naturally a shortstop, he has been taking reps at first base and has been doing well according to first base coach Travis Chapman.
I mean, we need Rizzo. And if the Yankees wait too long to bring him back into the mix, he won't have enough time to get acclimated in order to be truly effective for this team down the stretch. We have seen this with other players who have been out almost too long and just don't have enough time to ramp up. Giancarlo Stanton is the perfect example. He is just now getting around on the fast ball but he's not 100%. I feel like this coaching staff babies these players just a bit too much. I wish they could be more like New York Mets Manager Buck Showalter—trusting his veterans to self regulate themselves.
The return of the Rizz might just be a tease. It will take time; time this team simply does not have to ramp him up to be effective. I could be wrong. And I hope I am, but the Yankees appear to be too broken to be impactful for this postseason. Despite having an easier schedule than their fiercest AL East opponent the Tampa Bay Rays, the Yankees have a long way to go in order to overcome teams like Houston in the postseason. Anything can happen of course but for now, I feel like it will take a big rally and a lot of momentum for the Yankees to steamroll through to the World Series.
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--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Senior Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof
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