Yankees Injuries: Aaron Hicks still dealing with lingering back issue

Spring Training started off great for Aaron Hicks after he and the Yankees agreed to a 7-year, $70M extension on February 25th that will keep him in pinstripes through the year 2025. However, a little over a week later he started experiencing some back issues that have kept him out of the lineup ever since.

This spring the Yankees have to extensions with two key members of their great young core and both are already sidelined with injuries. Luis Severino was shut down for two weeks due to right rotator cuff inflammation last Tuesday and is expected to start the regular season on the DL. Hicks has been out of the lineup since March 2nd but the Yanks are hopeful he can return to the lineup at some point this week.

Hicks was set to meet with a doctor on Monday and while the Yankees believe he is going to be fine, there has to be some concern within the club just over two weeks away from Opening Day. Back issues can often linger and Hicks is a player who’s had a history of nagging muscle injuries throughout his Yankee tenure. Now if Hicks can return to the lineup later this week he can get the desired numbers of at-bats that players need before they feel ready to go for the regular season, but he’s running out of time.

On Sunday Hicks made some progress when he began running again and swung the bat from both sides of the plate. He “had a good day,” said manager Aaron Boone according to Pete Caldera of North Jersey.com. Although it’s still unlikely that he will be in the lineup Tuesday night against the Orioles, he’s on the right track.

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That’s promising news, but if Hicks continues to feel stiffness in his back he could miss the start of the season. That could open up a spot on the 25-man roster for Clint Frazier. Frazier and Tyler Wade are currently battling for the final bench spot on the roster but because of Wade’s versatility, he seems like the favorite to win the spot as of today.

One of the main reasons Frazier is probably going to start the season at Triple-A is he needs to play every day. After missing most of last season due to injury he needs to get consistent at-bats and he won’t get them if Hicks is good to go for Opening Day.

That being said, if Hicks needs more time to heal Frazier is the guy who would be called upon to fill in. Brett Gardner would then shift over to center field and Frazier would take over as the primary left fielder.

Hopefully, it doesn’t come to that because there aren’t many players on the Yankees roster who are as important to the team as Hicks is heading into this season.

After his career year in 2018, Hicks has established himself as one of the best center fielders in all of baseball and is a player who helps his team win in so many different ways. Losing him for any time at all would be a huge blow.