Latest muddled DJ LeMahieu injury update all but makes Yankees' intentions clear

If the New York Yankees planned to lean on DJ LeMahieu at third base to begin the 2025 regular season, their plans went awry in his second at-bat of the spring. If they planned, instead, to attempt to bury LeMahieu after a semi-earnest "competition," then their plans are being executed to perfection.

LeMahieu pulled up lame after his spring debut on Saturday, exiting stage right in a manner that was unfortunately very convenient for the fans who'd pre-planned to write him off. Despite the Yankees making postseason trips in three of the past four seasons, LeMahieu has not appeared in a playoff game for the team since prior to his six-year, $90 million free agent contract. The 2020 postseason is still his most recent October showing.

Handing the job to LeMahieu — or giving him the Opening Day start after an illegitimate, monetary-based "competition" — always seemed ill-advised. Now, the Yankees have an opportunity to keep his leadership in place while moving his on-field contributions out of sight and out of mind.

The media caught up with LeMahieu on Thursday, and while his update made clear that the severity of the calf issue was going to keep him off the field a while, it did not clear up what, exactly, his injury is. LeMahieu claimed that doctors told him it's a "Grade 1 or 2" strain, and the team would evaluate his exact timeline later in the day.

Yankees' DJ LeMahieu has either a Grade 1 or Grade 2 calf strain, and it feels like they should probably know which one?

Third base will now come down to either Oswaldo Cabrera or Oswald Peraza, pending the move for a "right-handed bat" that both Joel Sherman and Aaron Boone have hinted at this week.

Peraza is out of minor-league options, but LeMahieu may be out of lifelines. As sad as it's been to watch his four-year regression unfold, doctors leaving him somewhere undefined between a Grade 1 and 2 issue feels strangely apropos. Maybe he'll recover and return to being a valuable bench piece, but for now, it certainly wouldn't feel shocking for his season to start with a 60-Day IL trip as the Yankees seek a not-so-subtle way to move on.

Whenever this strain resolves itself, LeMahieu will still need a full spring training in the minors, and his rehab appearances have often featured stops and starts in recent years. Maybe it's time for LeMahieu, Nolan Arenado and Paul Goldschmidt to reunite for a very different conversation.