Andrew Benintendi to Undergo Hand Surgery, Yankees are Hopeful for a Late-Season Return
The injury bug continues to haunt the New York Yankees this season as it’s claimed another victim: Andrew Benintendi.
Following Sunday’s 2-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays, manager Aaron Boone revealed that the club’s everyday left fielder had suffered a broken hamate bone in his right hand, which will require surgery. The injury will sideline him for at least several weeks.
Benintendi injured his hand during his second at-bat of Friday’s 9-0 defeat versus the Rays. While attempting to swing, the 28-year-old felt a pop in his hand and immediately left the game, later replaced by Oswaldo Cabrera.
X-rays came back negative initially, although the Yankees also opted to send the 5-foot-9 outfielder for a CT scan, which later confirmed his fractured hand. He plans to meet with team doctors on Monday to map his next steps before going under the knife.
“I’m meeting with some doctors [Monday] in New York, and we’ll go from there,” Benintendi said. “We’ll just take it day-by-day at this point, I guess. I’ll need surgery at some point and get that done as soon as possible.”
Luckily, Benintendi already knows what it takes to return from a broken hamate bone. The left-hander suffered the same injury during his freshman year at the University of Arkansas in 2014 when he ultimately had the bone removed.
Now, eight years later, the bone is causing an issue once again as it’s either grown back or wasn’t extracted fully back then.
“When I went through this before, it was right around a couple of weeks,” Benintendi explained. “We’ll see what happens. Obviously, I want to get back out there in time for the latter part of the season and then, hopefully, the playoffs. It’s all too early to say right now.”
The Yankees, who acquired Benintendi from the Kansas City Royals in July, will have to move forward without one of their key trade-deadline acquisitions. There’s hope he’ll be ready to return come playoffs, though.
In the meantime, Cabrera, Aaron Hicks and Tim Locastro are all likely to spend time in left field. Estevan Florial will also be an option off the bench, as well.
It’s been somewhat of a struggle for Benintendi since joining the Bronx Bombers, as he was hitting just .246/.323/.395 with a 107 wRC+ score across 131 plate appearances. The veteran lefty performed much better before the trade, slashing .320/.387/.398 with a 127 wRC+ over 390 plate appearances with the Royals.
Benintendi can become a free agent after this season, and there’s no question he’ll be pushing to return before then, allowing him to conclude his 2022 campaign on a positive note.
The Yankees, who led the AL East Division by double digits for much of this season, now hold just a 5.0-game edge. As injuries have continued to pile up, it’s become more challenging to fend off the competition down the stretch.
If Benintendi returns, it’ll be crucial for him to replicate his early results with Kansas City rather than the ones he has produced since arriving in New York.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85