On Wednesday Chris Parmelee hit two homers in his first start as a Yankee and yesterday morning New York columnists asked themselves whether he could be the answer, or at least an answer, to the Yankees struggling lineup.
Then last night he left the game with a pulled hamstring while doing the splits to dig out a ball thrown to first. Parmelee could not put any weight on the leg when he got up. He was helped off the field, his arms wrapped around the shoulders of manager Joe Girardi and and a trainer. He has not been placed on the disabled list yet, but he will, following an MRI today. After the game Girardi said “I would be completely shocked if he’s a player for us” going forward. He’ll join three other Yankees first baseman on the disabled list, following Mark Teixeira, Greg Bird and Dustin Ackley.
In the recaps this morning I said that being the Yankees first baseman is like being the drummer for Spinal Tap. This was maybe more accurate than I realized at the time. I just did some digging and I could find four confirmed dead Spinal Tap drummers, depending on your view of what is and what isn’t canon:
- John “Stumpy” Pepys (mysterious gardening accident);
- Eric Childs (choked on someone else’s vomit, though it’s unclear because you can’t dust for vomit);
- Peter Bond (spontaneous combustion); and
- Mick Shrimpton (wandered away).
They later had drum machines which blew up, but that may not count. Maybe if Nick Swisher or Rob Refsnyder take over they’ll just wander away or blow up too. I hope not, though. They seem nice.
