ANAHEIM, Calif. (AP) — DJ LeMahieu made his season debut Tuesday night with the New York Yankees.
However, it’s a position in the batting order that we haven’t seen him in for a while.
With Yankees leadoff hitter Anthony Volpe on a 19-game hitting streak, manager Aaron Boone chose LeMahieu to bat ninth in the first of a three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels.
It was the first time LeMahieu had sat at the back of the batting order since March 31, 2019, against Baltimore, and that was enough for him.
“Right now, I don’t think there’s a lot of changes going on offensively,” said LeMahieu, who is back on the 60-day disabled list. “I’m looking forward to it, I’m waiting in the back of the order. I’m batting eighth and ninth. I haven’t batted there in a while, but it doesn’t feel too strange.”
The 35-year-old third baseman missed the Yankees’ first 55 games with a non-displaced fracture in his right foot. LeMahieu sustained the injury during a spring training game on March 16 when a ball hit him in the foot and went foul.
Despite being without their two-time leadoff hitter, the Yankees have won 11 of their last 14 games to post the AL’s best record at 37-18, which is tied for the third-best start since 1998.
“He’s just excited to be back with this team and play, and that’s a testament to what he’s capable of,” manager Aaron Boone said of LeMahieu not taking his usual leadoff batting position. “He’s a guy who’s already had a great career with the Yankees, so it’s not surprising that they’re being unselfish and not caring about him at all.”
LeMahieu has a batting average of .312 in 29 games as the ninth batter during his major league career.
LeMahieu returns to a Yankees offense that leads the majors in home runs (81), on-base percentage (.335) and OPS (.773) and is third with a .257 batting average.
“I’m feeling good and I’ve been able to get some baseball practice in the last few weeks,” he said. “I would have liked to play, but this season has been special so I’m excited to be a part of it.”
Boone said he plans to start LeMahieu for all three games of the series against the Angels and Friday’s series opener at San Francisco, then give him a few days of rest.
LeMahieu won the AL batting title with a .364 average in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, but has batted just .258 over the past three seasons, including a career-low .243 last season.
Nonetheless, Boone is pleased to have a player with LeMahieu’s versatility back in the lineup.
“They’ve got a solid hitting style, they’ve got elite defense, they’ve got the defensive versatility, they can play a couple of positions in the infield,” Boone said. “The way they’re swinging the bat as a team, we have a chance to have a really long lineup.”
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
