Yankees: Will Luke Voit’s emergence keep Greg Bird off the playoff roster?

The emergence of Luke Voit over the past month-plus is one of the main reasons why the Yankees were able to clinch home-field for the Wild Card game against the A’s. Voit’s outstanding play has earned him the right to be the starting first basemen throughout the playoffs. Because of this that likely means Greg Bird will be left off the roster entirely.

Just a couple months ago I don’t think anyone could have possibly imagined Luke Voit would have a huge role to play in the Yankees impending postseason run. After the team acquired him and international slot money for Chasen Shreve and Giovanny Gallegos it seemed like the Yanks were more interested in bringing back the money than Voit, who was stuck at Triple-A Memphis.

It’s clear now that Voit was much more than just a throw-in to the deal and that all he needed was an opportunity to play every day to prove he’s a legitimate big league hitter. Voit didn’t get much playing time after his first call-up with the Yankees back on August 2nd and was sent down after a short 11-day stint. However, since his second call-up on August 21st Voit hasn’t looked back and has quickly become one of the hottest hitters in baseball and one of the most feared in the Yankees lineup.

Voit’s meteoric rise has been a joy to watch and has made Yankee fans forget about the team’s issues at first base over the past two seasons. The days of Chris Carter and Ji-Man Choi are long gone as it looks like Voit could be the first basemen of the future.

Because of Voit’s exploits, former first basemen of the future Greg Bird has been relegated to the bench due to struggling mightily in the everyday role before Voit’s arrival. Bird just wasn’t getting the job done, hitting below .200 with only 11 HR and 37 RBI in over 250 at-bats. Even utility man Neil Walker has taken some at-bats away from Bird at first which tells you all you need to know about his chances of making the postseason roster.

To be blunt, the odds of Bird making the roster for Wednesday night’s Wild Card game are slim to none. Unless somebody gets injured there just isn’t any need to have him as one of the 25 players chosen to help the Yankees make their postseason push.

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Because Bird only plays one position, the only way he’d ever be used in a game is as a pinch hitter which isn’t going to happen in this stacked Yankee lineup. Even if a situation came up where a pinch hitter was needed the Yankees have better options in Brett Gardner and Walker.

Bird is a solid defensive first baseman but Voit has also shown he’s an adequate defender so it’s unlikely the Yankees would ever replace him with Bird for defense. If they needed to sub Voit out in a late-game situation they could always use Walker instead because he can play solid defense at multiple infield positions with first being one of them.

Walker is more valuable to have off the bench than Bird not only because of his versatility but also because he’s simply just a better hitter than Bird. Come decision time he’ll get one of the four bench spots on the playoff roster along with Gardner, Romine, and Hechavarria.

It’s a shame how the year has played out for Bird because heading into the season he was expected to have a breakout season. Nobody had more confidence in him than me, but he just hasn’t lived up to expectations. Injuries obviously played a role in his struggles once again, but he had plenty of opportunities to put a hold on the starting job, and instead, he left the door open for someone like Voit to take it.

What role Bird will play for the Yankees next season and the years to follow is hard to predict, but for this year, his season will likely end on Sunday. As for Voit, the real season for him is about to begin and I can’t wait to see what else he has in store for us playing on the games’ biggest stage.