Yankees: Who’s the odd man out when Greg Bird returns?

With the return of Greg Bird looming the Yankees are about to have a tough decision to make. Somebody on the current 25-man roster is going to be the odd man out but right now it’s tough to predict exactly who that will be.

Lately, everything is going well for the Yankees even without Bird and a couple of other key contributors. There’s so much depth throughout the organization that the Yanks have been able to replace guys like Bird and Brandon Drury in the lineup without seeing any kind of dip in production.

The return of Drury is another “good” problem to have for manager Aaron Boone but unlike Bird, there is a strong chance that he won’t regain his starting job at third base. That should stay in the hands of rookie Miguel Andujar and rightfully so.

In the absence of Bird, Neil Walker and Tyler Austin have done a nice job platooning at first base. Walker got off to a terribly slow start in March and April batting under .200 with no home runs, but Austin was excellent batting .290 with five bombs and 16 RBI.

After years in the minor leagues, Austin was finally earning consistent playing time in the big leagues and taking advantage of his opportunity. That was until he charged the mound in Boston and fought Joe Kelly, resulting in a four-game suspension.

Unfortunately, he let his emotions get the best of him and since his return from the suspension he’s been a different player and the production has completely dropped off. In May he’s yet to pick up a hit in 19 at-bats. Even with most of his at-bats coming against lefties he’s really struggled. That could lead to him being the corresponding move when Bird is ready to go, especially now that Walker has finally found his stroke at the plate.

Neil Walker isn’t going anywhere

It was only a matter of time before the veteran got going because over the course of his nearly 10-year career he’s been such a professional hitter. The slow start can likely be attributed to him signing with the Yankees late into spring training, but right now that’s a thing of the past.

As this Yankee team has taken off over the past couple weeks Walker’s been right in the middle of everything picking up clutch hit after clutch hit. His impressive turnaround continued when he walked things off on Saturday with a game-winning single to beat the A’s in 11 innings.

This time three weeks ago many believed that the struggling Walker would have to go when Bird returned but in the month of May, he’s hitting .346 with an incredible OBP of .514. He’s also played a very solid first base and has deservedly been given the majority of the at-bats at first base over the scuffling Austin.

Walker’s roster spot is definitely safe moving forward and with Bird’s injury history he will be a valuable guy to keep around all-season. He’s a more versatile player than Austin and he’s a switch hitter which is something any manager would love to have at his disposal late in games.

It’s tough because Austin deserves to be on a big league roster and not back at Scranton, but between him and Walker, he still has one option left and can be sent down. That should make the choice an easy one once Bird returns to the roster by the end of the month.

The Yankees could also always send down or DFA a reliever like David Hale, but it still doesn’t make much sense keeping Austin around on the bench. If the plan is to cut a reliever for Bird the open roster spot Austin leaves behind should go to another outfielder like Clint Frazier who is currently tearing the cover off the ball at Triple-A.

Next: Yankees have the best bottom of the order in baseball

After this season, neither Walker or Austin project to have long-term futures with the Yanks because if Bird is healthy he’s going to be an everyday player. He’s still a big part of the team’s young core and the Yankees are at their best when in he is the lineup.

However, for the rest of this season, the veteran Walker can provide more in that backup, utility role and fill in for Bird when he needs a day off. Sometimes baseball isn’t fair and unfortunately for Austin that leaves him on the outside looking in.