NEW YORK – New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone isn’t sure what Clint frazier can get back to playing baseball after the outfielder was pulled from a minor league rehab assignment on Monday amid continuing problems with his vision.
“We’ll see,” Boone said when asked if Frazier would play again. “Obviously, he’s been through a lot and seen a lot of people and a lot of trials and everything. We will try to continue to follow him and support him where we can. But from now on, a little pattern of waiting. I know he feels good today, so already. we will see”.
The 26-year-old Frazier began a minor league rehab assignment last Tuesday after missing nearly six weeks due to dizziness and other symptoms consistent with vertigo. He was 4-for-10 in three games, but Boone said Frazier was feeling bad before Sunday’s game with Somerset, at Double-A, and was pulled from the lineup.
Frazier was formally removed from rehab assignment Monday and transferred to the 60-day disabled list.
“I just didn’t feel like I was good enough to go on,” Boone said before New York played the Los Angeles Angels on Monday. “So he decided to log out and we applaud him for making that decision.”
Frazier was placed on the disabled list on July 1 with what was initially called vertigo and later defined as a possible vision problem. He missed most of the 2018 season with persistent concussion symptoms, but it’s unclear if his current problems are related.
Frazier, a 2013 first-round selected by the Cleveland Indians, hit well in 2019 but was banished to Triple-A for much of the season after several defensive errors.
Finally, he broke through New York’s figure-filled outfield for regular game time in 2020 and he shone. He hit .267 with a .905 OPS and firmer defense in left and right field, allowing him to play a role every day in the 2021 season.
The brilliance disappeared this year. Frazier hit .186 with five home runs and a .633 OPS in 66 games before going on the disabled list.
Also on Monday, the right Luis Severino (right shoulder tightness) had an MRI as scheduled. Boone said the team hoped to review the results before the end of the night.
The receptor Gary Sanchez (COVID-19 IL) hit the field and could be activated Tuesday for a doubleheader against the Boston Red Sox.
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