BOSTON — General manager Brian Cashman didn’t rule it out, but don’t expect Aaron Hicks to be back from his oblique injury in time to help the Yankees this week in Boston.
Cashman said it was “more likely” that Hicks would return when the Yankees are in Detroit, a series that begins on Friday.
Hicks was with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Monday and is scheduled to begin a rehab stint Tuesday. The center fielder played just one game before he was placed on the disabled list.
Initially, Hicks had hoped to be able to jump back into the Yankees’ lineup as soon as he was eligible to come off the 10-day DL, which would have been Tuesday in Boston, but the Yankees opted to have him play minor league games first.
In Hicks’ absence, Brett Gardner has gotten the bulk of playing time in center and Giancarlo Stanton has spent more time than expected (five games) in left.
The team is also without Jacoby Ellsbury, who spent Monday getting examined by a hip specialist, and Cashman declined to offer a timeframe for his potential return until the Yankees got more information.
The same is true for Brandon Drury, who Cashman said saw several doctors Monday to try to determine the cause of the blurred vision and headaches that landed him on the DL. The GM is unsure when the team will know exactly what the third baseman’s physical issue is, let alone when he might be back on the field.
“It’s just the beginning of the process,’’ Cashman said. “Until we get a diagnosis, there’s no timeframe.”As for Gary Sanchez, who said on Sunday he believed he would be back in the lineup Tuesday after being removed with a cramp in his right calf during Friday’s 14-inning loss at the Stadium and missing the next two games, Cashman said the team would wait until Sanchez sees the trainers before making a decision about whether he’ll be in the lineup.
Luis Severino will start the series opener at Fenway against left-hander Chris Sale. Masahiro Tanaka is expected to face David Price on Wednesday and with CC Sabathia on the DL with a tight hip, the Yankees could go with Sonny Gray in the series finale on Thursday versus Rick Porcello.
Drury’s absence sped up Miguel Andujar’s return to the Bronx and following an 0-for-12 start to the season, Andujar is 3-for-8 with three RBIs in his last two game. … Gleyber Torres had the first four-hit game of his professional career when he went 4-for-5 for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre against Syracuse on Sunday, a day after hitting his first homer of the season.
The Red Sox placed Xander Bogaerts on the DL with a cracked bone in his left ankle. Brock Holt filled in Sunday after Bogaerts, who is hitting .368, got hurt.