The New York Yankees first base position has been a bit of an anchor weighing down the team so far this season. Could they turn to Aaron Hicks to help get more production out of the position?
Coming into this season, the New York Yankees thought first base was the least of their concerns. Greg Bird was setting the world on fire, looking like a combination of Babe Ruth, Mickey Mantle and Lou Gehrig. Then came the foot injury and he's been on the DL with no exact date of return coming. Chris Carter was signed as a platoon player for the position and is hitting .213 with a .632 OPS and 35 strikeouts in 91 plate appearances.
Tyler Austin is on a rehab assignment after being injured during spring training and could be an option soon at the position.
Aaron Hicks has been impressive so far this season, but he's the fourth outfielder in a productive outfield that has Aaron Judge, Brett Gardner and Jacoby Ellsbury. With Matt Holliday at DH and playing the occasional first, it's hard to have a spot for Hicks.
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Could they take the athletic outfielder and make him a first baseman?
Well, it might already be happening, as Hicks has been taking grounders at first. However, this appears to just be as an in case of emergency option.
They've had Rob Refsnyder and Austin Romine play the position on the fly in recent years, but it appears they won't do that with Hicks.
"If he learned it, yes, I think so," Espada said. "During the season, it's really hard to get him to learn it. But he'll take some groundballs on his off days and see what he can do. He does have some athleticism but it takes time to learn."
I think once Austin is healthy enough he will get a shot and it wouldn't shock me if Carter gets DFA'd if he continues to be a non-factor offensively. They only gave him $3 million for this season, so if they have to eat the money they can. They are already eating a ton with the Alex Rodriguez retirement anyway.
If not, they could give Refsnyder another chance, even though he didn't provide much punch last season, or the could turn to Ji-Man Choi, who's hitting .353 with a .968 OPS so far in AAA and has big league experience.
The New York Yankees are struggling lately and while part of the reason has been the starting pitching, the lack of production from first base hasn't helped matters. As much as they could use Hicks' bat in the order, I don't think first is the ideal spot for him. Bird is the future at that spot and while they wait for him, I think Austin should be the guy once he's ready to go.
