Yankees Outfielder Aaron Hicks Close to a Return from Hamstring Injury

New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Hicks has resumed baseball activities and is expected to be activated off the disabled list within the next week.

The New York Yankees may soon have an alternative to struggling rookie Aaron Judge in rightfield, as Brendan Kuty of NJ Advance Media reports that Aaron Hicks is making significant progress in his rehab and could be ready for the start of next week’s series against the Tampa Bay Rays.

Yankees manager Joe Girardi provided an update before Monday night’s series opener against the Los Angeles Dodgers, telling reporters:

"I think he just has to continue to clear the hurdles. He’s doing fairly well…So, we’ll see where he’s at after we go to Boston, we’ll see where he’s physically at. I can’t tell you he’ll be ready to play in Tampa, but he’s making very good progress."

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Hicks has already started running and hitting in the batting cage. He will travel to Tampa Wednesday to continue his rehab and hopefully rejoin the big league team for good when they travel there to begin a three game series against the Rays.

The 26-year-old outfielder is eligible to come off the 15-day disabled list on September 16th, but it sounds like he will probably need a little additional time to shake off the rust.

While his overall line on the season remains cringe-worthy at .213/.273/.330 (59 wRC+) through 320 plate appearances, Hicks was beginning to heat up in August after being penciled into the lineup regularly for the first time this year, following the trade of Carlos Beltran at the deadline. He hit a solid .280/.330/.439 (106 wRC+) in 88 PA last month while playing excellent defense at all three outfield positions. 

The switch-hitting Hicks could be a platoon partner or just an outright replacement for Aaron Judge in right. Coming into Monday night, Judge had a .177/.258/.316 (53 wRC+) batting line through his first 89 MLB PA, while striking out in 43.8% of his trips to the batter’s box.

Early in September, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman alluded to the fact that Judge might have already lost playing time to his fellow-Aaron if Hicks were not sidelined:

"If Aaron Hicks was up and running, maybe some different things might happen, but with Hicks down, this is the way we’re going. [Judge will] always have strikeouts as part of his game, but it won’t always be like this."

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At the very least, Aaron Hicks will give the Yankees increased versatility with his ability to play all three outfield spots capably. With his glove, speed, and cannon arm, he’s a valuable player even when he’s not hitting.

If New York continues to give him regular turns in the lineup, hopefully he can build on the offensive promise he showed in August and begin to tap into his vast potential.