Over the past few weeks, New York Yankees second baseman Stephen Drew has been dealing with concussion-like symptoms.
Continue for updates.
Drew’s Season Likely Over
Friday, Oct. 2
After being hit in the face with a ground ball during a Sept. 12 game against the Toronto Blue Jays, Drew has been dealing with concussion-like symptoms while trying to stay on the field. According to ESPN’s Wallace Matthews, however, it looks like Drew won’t be playing again in 2015:
Per A.J. Herrmann of the YES Network, Drew underwent an MRI on Tuesday, Sept. 29, as he “had experienced dizziness and other disruptive symptoms” while appearing in seven games since the incident.
This isn’t the first time Drew experienced this kind of injury, as he sustained a vestibular concussion with the Boston Red Sox in 2013. The second baseman spoke with Hermann about it:
It’s like in 2013 in Boston. With the vestibular, when I had it in ’13 it was really severe. You go back on the play when the ball deflected off the glove and hit me in the face. I don’t think much about it and keep playing. It just progressed got worse. It’s that play. There was nothing else in the season.
Drew was batting .201 this season with 17 home runs, but the Yankees now face the possibility of extended postseason play without their starting middle infielder.
Moving forward, the Yankees may have to rely on rookie Rob Refsnyder, who has appeared in 14 games this season, all at second base, while batting .286 with two home runs. He has already made an impact with the team, though, hitting a home run in its postseason-clinching win over the Boston Red Sox on Thursday night.
On a roster with the likes of Carlos Beltran, Brian McCann and Alex Rodriguez, the loss of Drew won’t necessarily hurt the Yankees in terms of playoff experience. But if Refsnyder is indeed the Yankees’ man at second base moving forward, the 24-year-old is about to experience a trial by fire, as a one-game playoff looms against either the Houston Astros, Minnesota Twins or Los Angeles Angels.
Stats courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com
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