Yankees hope to have Anthony Rizzo back on Sunday
Anthony Rizzo of the Yankees celebrates a home run against the Angels in the second inning at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on Aug. 30 in Anaheim, Calif. Credit: Getty Images/Ronald Martinez
MILWAUKEE — All signs point toward Anthony Rizzo being back in the Yankees' lineup Sunday afternoon against the Brewers.
The first baseman, on the injured list since Sept. 6 with headaches that resulted from an epidural injection he received Sept. 1 for the lower-back tightness that has bothered him since June, went through a full day of on-field work Friday afternoon. That included an appearance against rehabbing pitcher Scott Effross in a live batting-practice session. Rizzo, by all accounts, cleared whatever hurdles remained.
“There’s a chance he’ll be in play on Sunday,” Aaron Boone said before Friday night’s game. “I think what I’m excited about is how good he feels. He’s been grinding with that back, before he went on the IL, for the better part of three, four weeks. And this seems, in his mind, to have done the trick. That he feels so good is encouraging.”
Rizzo, who hasn’t appeared in a game since Aug. 31, missed four games in early July with the lower-back issue he’s dealt with much of his career, then was out for five games in early August with the same injury.
Effross said Rizzo hit a “hard grounder to first” in their live BP matchup, adding with a smile: “it was probably a hit there. He looked good.”
Speaking of Effross . . .
Boone said Effross, out since Aug. 22 with a right shoulder strain, “likely” will pitch in a rehab game Sunday with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and “hopefully after that” be activated in time for the two-game series against the Pirates that starts Tuesday night at the Stadium.
“I felt really good,” Effross said. “Happy with everything, how it came out. See how the rehab [outing] goes as the next benchmark and hopefully be back out there soon.”
Bader about set, too
Centerfielder Harrison Bader (plantar fasciitis), who started a rehab assignment last Sunday, was off Friday but will play in two more rehab games Saturday and Sunday. The intent, Boone said, is to activate Bader in time for Tuesday’s game.
“We’re getting a premium, maybe the best defensive centerfielder in the league,” Boone said of Bader, who came to the Yankees from the Cardinals in exchange for Jordan Montgomery. “I think we’re adding a significant player to our lineup.”
