Yankees make unexpected roster move as Aaron Hicks IL decision looms

UPDATE: Hicks is apparently available off the bench.

The New York Yankees handled business for the second straight night against the Oakland Athletics, but -- can you believe it?! -- they may have lost another player to an injury. Aaron Hicks left Tuesday night's game with a hip issue.

Though there's still no official news on the veteran outfielder, who has actually come alive over the last few days, the Yankees still made a roster move and welcomed back a former top prospect. They also have the flexibility to clear a couple more 40-man spots if they so choose.

But, for now, Deivi Garcia is back in the Bronx after the Bombers sent reliever Greg Weissert back down to Triple-A. Weissert still can't really get it going, as he surrendered two earned runs on three hits and a walk on 33 pitches (17 strikes) in his one inning of work on Tuesday.

So why not give Garcia a whirl? He last appeared in the bigs back in 2021 when he made two starts because of injuries to the rotation. Since the conclusion of the 2020 season, the right-hander has been completely lost, and though he's improved in 2023, the results still aren't impressive.

Nonetheless, he's back after logging a 4.50 ERA, 1.70 WHIP and 18 strikeouts in his 10 games (20 innings) at Triple-A this year. He's been used as a reliever, so expect him to eat some innings out of the 'pen while he's here.

Yankees make Deivi Garcia roster move as they wait on Aaron Hicks' IL decision

The Yankees are playing the waiting game with their bullpen, which explains this roster move. If Garcia can provide multi-inning relief, it'll be a huge help as they hope to get back Tommy Kahnle in the bullpen and Luis Severino in the rotation.

Garcia's fall has been notable. Once a top prospect projected to be a long-term starter, the right-hander fell off a cliff after his MLB debut in 2020 and was demoted to Double-A Somerset last season. His mechanics have apparently been the primary culprit, which have affected his velocity and command drastically.

But he had a pretty good spring training (1.74 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, .200 BAA and 11 strikeouts in five games, totaling 10.1 innings), which provided hope for some sort of rebirth.

Might as well get him involved in Wednesday's action against the Oakland A's since it'll be a minor step up from the competition he's facing at Triple-A right now. Then he can build from there.

As for the outfield situation sans Hicks right now, thankfully Oswaldo Cabrera and Jake Bauers woke up their bats a bit against the Athletics, so that situation may solve itself naturally if one (1) thing can go right for the Yankees in the early going of 2023.