Ranking 5 injured Yankees by potential playoff impact

4. Frankie Montas

If you could promise us that a full-strength version of Frankie Montas — otherwise known as a playoff No. 2 — might be returning in October, he’d be teleported all the way to the top of this list.

However, if the Yankees get Montas at all, that won’t be what they’re getting. Aaron Boone has officially acknowledged that, while the trade deadline acquisition will throw this week, it might be (might be!) too late for him to get stretched out into anything beyond an “opener/relief role” by the ALDS.

Therefore, if the Yankees carried Montas — and if the right-hander can “get right” — he’d be a complete wild card in a bullpen full of (again, with a grain of salt) trusted options. Nobody’s sure who’s getting the final out of a one-run game for the Yankees (and that’s bad!), but you could pretty easily come up with a list of eight pitchers you’d rather see enter a tight postseason game before giving Frankie Montas a chance to stretch out and re-learn his own arsenal.

The bright side of the Yankees’ Montas swap is that the All-Star right-hander has another year in the Bronx to change the narrative. The other bright side is that both MLB-ready arms sent to the A’s — JP Sears and Ken Waldichuk — are struggling right now, and wouldn’t be reliable options for the upcoming Yankees’ postseason, either.

Next year, Montas could reignite the fan base’s flame. For now, his return would only create more chaos.