Yankees first baseman Luke Voit will have surgery to repair a partially torn meniscus in one of his knees and be shut down for three weeks, manager Aaron Boone said on Saturday. Voit, whose tear was revealed by an MRI exam, is expected to return “considerably sooner than June,” Boone said.
Until Voit returns, the Yankees will hand first-base duties to non-roster invitee Jay Bruce, who, along with outfielder Mike Tauchman, made the Opening Day roster on Saturday, Boone said.
“I was waiting on the Yankees to let me know,” Bruce said. “Clearly, this is where I wanted to be. This is why I signed here.”
The 33-year-old Bruce, who will earn $1.5 million by making the roster, entered Saturday batting .194/.242/.419 with two home runs across 13 Grapefruit League games.
Tauchman, who is out of Minor League options, struggled last season, batting .242/.342/.305 (83 OPS+) with no homers and 14 RBIs in 43 games, but Boone believes that Tauchman is much closer to the form he showed in 2019. That year, Tauchman was a key contributor for the Yanks’ “Next Man Up” brigade, batting .277/.361/.504 (127 OPS+) with 13 home runs and 47 RBIs in 87 games.
Kyle leads sports coverage and hosts the Concrete Jungle podcast. Have a lead or question? Send it to [email protected].