Oswaldo

Cabrera

Rizzo is just two weeks removed from fracturing two fingers. He missed the entire ALDS against the Royals but is not only back on the active roster but in the starting lineup for the Yankees. That will push both Jon Berti and Oswaldo Cabrera back to bench roles.

Cabrera got the start in Game 1, and after sitting Game 2, the 25-year-old utility player will get another outing at the not-so-hot corner in Game 3 against Seth Lugo. Jon Berti will retreat to the bench after starting Game 2. The rest of the lineup behind Clarke Schmidt: 2B Gleyber Torres, RF Juan Soto, CF Aaron Judge, C Austin Wells, DH Giancarlo Stanton, 2B Jazz Chisholm Jr., SS Anthony Volpe, 1B Cabrera and LF Alex Verdugo.

Verdugo over Jasson Domínguez was expected, but Cabrera over Ben Rice is a surprise. Cabrera didn’t play much in September, going 6-for-25 during the final month of the season. He made five starts at first base over the course of the year. The Yankees lineup: 2B Gleyber Torres, RF Juan Soto, CF Aaron Judge, C Austin Wells, DH Giancarlo Stanton, 3B Jazz Chisholm Jr., SS Anthony Volpe, 1B Cabrera, LF Verdugo.

With Anthony Rizzo sidelined with two fractured fingers, the Yankees are looking for other options at first base. It seems likely that the left-handed hitting Ben Rice would start against right-handed pitchers and the switch-hitting Oswaldo Cabrera could start against lefties. Rice got off to a hot start when he got his first shot to take Rizzo’s playing time, but he faded down the stretch, finishing the year hitting .171/.264/.349 with seven home runs in 50 games. Having either Rice or Cabrera in the lineup just furthers the concerns about the bottom of the Yankees lineup.

Volpe will get a day off to start the three-game set against Seattle. Oswaldo Cabrera will instead be the starter at shortstop behind Luis Gil and the Yankees’ pitching staff. Volpe has really struggled thus far in September with a .163 average, no extra base hits, and 17 strikeouts over 49 at-bats.

The Yankees have settled on a platoon at third base with Cabrera playing against all righties and Oswald Peraza starting against all lefties. While that would generally be good news for Cabrera, after Thursday’s game, five of the Yankees’ next six games are against left-handed starters which will mean more playing time in the short term for Peraza.

Boone added that the club is still working to determine the severity of the injury, which will require a trip to the injured list. The biggest question left for fantasy managers is whether Chisholm will require surgery, which could potentially impact his 2025 outlook. The 26-year-old, who was batting .316 (18-for-57) with seven homers and five steals over 14 games since being acquired last month from the Marlins, suffered the left elbow injury on a slide into home plate during Monday’s loss to the White Sox. There should be some clarity on his status in the coming days, but fantasy managers should prepare for an extended absence. It’ll likely be some combination of Oswald Peraza, Oswaldo Cabrera and DJ LeMahieu taking over at the hot corner for New York.

The positive news here is that Chisholm hasn’t landed on the injured list after suffering a left elbow on a slide into home plate during Monday’s loss to Chicago. The versatile 26-year-old has been on fire since arriving in New York a couple weeks ago, batting .316 (18-for-57) with seven homers and five steals over 14 games in Pinstripes. There’s optimism that he won’t require a lengthy absence, so fantasy managers should consider him day-to-day for now. It’ll be Oswaldo Cabrera filling in at the hot corner on Tuesday night in his absence.

Gleyber Torres didn’t want to make the move, so Chisholm will give it a try. He’s hitting sixth behind the returning Giancarlo Stanton tonight. Oswaldo Cabrera and DJ LeMahieu are both in line for less playing time while the Yankees experiment here.

Cabrera smacked a two-run ground-rule double off of Greg Wissert in the eighth inning that increased the Bombers’ lead to 7-2. He also drew a walk in the contest, finishing the night 1-for-4. On the season, the 25-year-old is hitting .246/.292/.354 with six homers, 32 RBI and three swipes in 261 plate appearances.