Yankees promote Ben Rortvedt, place Jose Trevino on IL with ominous-sounding injury

UPDATE: Trevino has told reporters he is out for the season, per Chris Kirschner of The Athletic and Bryan Hoch of MLB.com. The wrist has been an issue since Spring Training. How ... were we not told this earlier?

As frustrating as the reality is to accept, Yankees fans would much rather Jose Trevino's offensive disappearance this season be attributable to an injury rather than honest regression.

Trevino, 2022's Platinum Glove-winning catcher and an AL All-Star, saw his second half production disappear last season after a toe injury suffered during normal catcher wear-and-tear. Sound familiar? This season, he's been in a year-long slump, posting a dregs-worthy 58 OPS+ and .570 OPS and losing playing time to career backup Kyle Higashioka.

Fans have been begging for a change at the position and a second chance for Triple-A backstop Ben Rortvedt. While they were given that opportunity on Friday, Trevino's diagnosis still stung the eyes.

When reporters arrived prior to Friday's opener against the Royals, Rortvedt had a locker. It was swiftly revealed that Trevino was hitting the 10-day IL with a "right wrist tear," an injury that certainly sounds like it'll take longer than 10 days to heal.

Yankees lose catcher Jose Trevino (wrist tear), add lefty Ben Rortvedt

Remember, sprains are just small tears. To see this called a tear and not a sprain feels meaningful. But we're not doctors.

Either way, the Yankees' lineup just got a little more balanced on Higashioka's off days, if you're looking for silver linings. The reason for the season is quite brutal, but Rortvedt -- if he can stay healthy, the biggest "if" in human history -- seems to have a more potent bat than his predecessor (though, again, Trevino was an All-Star last year).

Rortvedt was 2-for-7 in five games with the big-league Yankees earlier this summer, and hit .286 with a .900 OPS in 29 games with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. His first MLB appearance this year came courtesy of Trevino's other IL stint. With Josh Donaldson now on the 60-Day IL, the oft-mirage-like Rortvedt has now made it to the bigs as one of two surviving members of that controversial trade. Isiah Kiner-Falefa says hi.

Hopefully, the two will be hooking up for a few successful relays and rallies in the weeks to come from the bottom of the order. Higashioka gets the start on Friday instead. We wish Trevino the best in his recovery.

Need another reason to be hopeful? Austin Wells earned a long-awaited Triple-A promotion to fill Rortvedt's role. Silver lining.