PHOENIX - The Yankees left Saturday night with more than a walk-off loss on their hands. They also had another injury issue to monitor, this one tied directly to the surface at Chase Field.
Spencer Jones was scratched from the lineup because of soreness in his left foot and heel, and Aaron Boone said the concern was connected to the turf. Jones had jammed the heel earlier in the week in Minnesota, then felt the discomfort flare up again after playing Friday night in Arizona.
“It’s no big deal,” Jones said.
He also brushed it off as the kind of thing that comes with the grind of playing on that surface.
“Just a little banged up,” Jones said. “Playing on turf is different, hard on the feet.”
Boone said Jones was day to day and stressed that the Yankees still viewed him as available. In fact, the manager said he nearly used him Saturday.
“Just felt like especially being on the turf here, he kind of jammed that heel in Minnesota and being on the turf [Friday], so I think it’s just a day-to-day kind of thing,” Boone said. “I even view him as available tonight.”
After the game, Boone made the point even more clearly. Jones wasn’t kept out because the team considered him unable to play.
“He was available, like I would’ve… if a spot came up to hit or we needed to do something I would’ve gone to him,” Boone said.
That matters for a Yankees team already juggling bodies. Aaron Judge is back on the 10-day injured list with a right calf strain, and Cody Bellinger stayed in left field Saturday as Boone tried not to pile more stress onto players dealing with the stadium’s surface. Boone said Bellinger was feeling the accumulated strain and didn’t want to increase his load.
The Yankees can survive one missed game from Jones. What they can’t afford is a longer absence, because he gives them both production and flexibility.
He has played 80 games this season and is hitting .248 with a .318 on-base percentage and .433 slugging percentage. He has 10 home runs, 12 doubles, one triple, 38 RBIs and nine stolen bases in 265 plate appearances.
Baseball Savant credits him with 23 extra-base hits, or one every 11.5 plate appearances.
His value also shows up in the way Boone can piece together the outfield. Caballero can play center, but Saturday was only his second start there this season. The Yankees also recalled Max Schuemann when Judge went on the injured list, adding versatility, but that move doesn’t replace Jones’ left-handed power or his regular role in center.
The good news is that the issue still sounds short-term. Jones expects to be back quickly, Boone treated him as a day-to-day player, and the Yankees have not suggested an injured-list move. New York closes out the Arizona series Sunday, then gets Monday off before opening a four-game set against the Rays in three days at Yankee Stadium.
For now, the hope is simple: one day away from Chase Field’s turf is enough to calm the heel down.
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