NEW YORK Aaron Judge Jersey - DJ LeMahieu has joined star sluggers Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton on the injured list, challenging the Yankees to continue calling upon their “Next Man Up" playbook from last season. LeMahieu was placed on the 10-day IL on Sunday with a left thumb sprain, one day after the American League’s leading hitter exited Saturday’s 11-5 win over the Red Sox. In a corresponding move, the club recalled infielder/outfielder Miguel Andújar from their alternate site in Moosic, Pa. “DJ can't be replaced," said left-hander James Paxton. “He's awesome out there -- great hitter, great in the field. He's one of our best players. That being said, we're very deep. I hope that it's just something short." Lauded as the Yankees’ most valuable player last season, LeMahieu is batting an AL-best .411 (30-for-73) through 19 games, second in the Majors behind the Rockies’ Charlie Blackmon (.446). The injury is believed to be similar to one that cost LeMahieu about two weeks with the Rockies in May 2018. Yankees manager Aaron Boone said that the club is seeking a second opinion from a hand specialist who treated LeMahieu at that time. “It's just a sprain. It's not broken," Boone said. “In some ways, we’re a little bit relieved after kind of fearing for the worst last night. We won't really have anything definitive probably until [Monday]."LeMahieu’s injury figures to spell increased playing time at second base for Thairo Estrada and Tyler Wade. “Missing a guy like that MVP is something that's going to hurt," said Judge, “but I know we’ve got a lot of guys that are waiting to fill that role and step up for the time being until he comes back. He's going to be missed, but I know DJ can't wait to get back out there." LeMahieu winced in discomfort after swinging at a fourth-inning pitch from Boston starter Nathan Eovaldi. Boone and head athletic trainer Tim Lentych spoke to LeMahieu, who expressed a desire to remain in the game. After LeMahieu grounded into an inning-ending fielder’s choice, he took his position at second base, prompting Boone to return to the infield as LeMahieu’s teammates huddled around. “I was just trying to get a better handle on where he was at with it Alex Rodriguez Jersey, to get a sense of what he was feeling and what he was going through," Boone said. After the top of the fifth inning, LeMahieu was led to the clubhouse and Boone nodded to Wade, who took the field for the sixth inning. X-rays taken at Yankee Stadium were negative, and LeMahieu was sent for further imaging at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. Though the Yankees Aroldis Chapman Jersey reached the one-third mark of their season with a division-best 14-6 record, this week has felt like a flashback to last season, when the Yankees set Major League records by having 30 players serve 39 stints on the injured list. Judge landed on the 10-day IL on Friday with a strained right calf, joining Stanton, who is expected to be sidelined for about three to four weeks with a left hamstring strain. It’s the middle of August, and though the season isn’t that old, this time of year means the same in a 60-game regular season as it does in normal times: simply, it’s getting late quickly. Three weeks are in the books, with six to go. And while it would still seem a little rash to predict an Orioles-Marlins World Series, it’s not too early to speculate on what improbable storylines might become a little more believable in another week or so. There are 17 teams with .500-or-better records (that includes the Cardinals, who have played only eight games). The Rockies seem legitimately capable of making the National League West a true race with the Dodgers, the Indians may be well-equipped to stay in the thick of things despite a recent upheaval of their rotation and the Marlins -- the Marlins! -- could make a run at the postseason, despite making several dozen roster moves after the weirdest start in anyone’s history. Biggest jump: The Brewers went from “meh" to something much more interesting, which is what happens when you take three of four from the Cubs at Wrigley Field to get back to .500. Milwaukee jumped eight spots, from No. 19 to No. 11, and is now tied for second in the NL Central with St. Louis (which has played 12 fewer games). Honorable mention: We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention the Orioles Bernie Williams Jersey, who jumped seven spots, from No. 22 to No. 15. The O’s rank in the top three in MLB in average, slugging and OPS. They have 12 wins already, with six weeks remaining. Most projection models had them winning no more than 22 games all season. Biggest drop: Clearly, the Red Sox are struggling, and it reflects in our rankings, where they dropped another five spots to No. 28. They’ve lost seven games in a row and have been outscored by opponents, 67-32, over that stretch. Power Rankings Top 5 1) Dodgers (16-7, 1 last week) Since briefly abandoning their masher strategy and employing a series of bunts early last week in an effort to break out of an offensive slump against the Padres, the Dodgers have been on a tear, outscoring opponents, 36-14. They’re on a five-game winning streak and could further add to it this week when they play the struggling Mariners for two at home, followed by two more in Seattle. Meanwhile, Mookie Betts has six homers and 13 RBIs over 10 games since returning to the lineup following a finger injury. 2) A's (16-6, 3) Unscientifically, this is most likely the highest the A’s have ever landed in our Power Rankings. They were relentless against the Giants over the weekend, staging two dramatic late-game comebacks against their Bay Area rivals before rolling to a 15-3 win in the finale. Oakland has scored 48 runs this season in the seventh inning or later, the second most in the Majors, trailing only Arizona (52). 3) Yankees (15-6, 2) Though the rivalry is more fun when both teams are fighting it out for the top spot in the American League East standings, Yankees-Red Sox matchups are always notable, regardless of the big picture. The first-place Yanks have won nine straight vs. the Sox Brett Gardner Jersey, including six this year. Going back to last year, New York has outscored Boston, 98-50, in the past 15 meetings, of which the Yankees have won 14. Here’s a little more historical perspective -- the Yanks have won 10 straight over the Red Sox for the first time since tying a franchise record with 12 straight from 1952-53. 4) Cubs (13-6, 5) The Cubs lost three of four to the Brewers over the weekend, but that’s the first hiccup they’ve had through three weeks of the season, and that’s significant. Chicago has dropped four of seven to Milwaukee, but against everyone else, it's 10-2. This week will be a litmus test of sorts -- the Cubs will play the Cardinals five times in the next three days, and between now and Aug. 29, they'll play three seven-inning doubleheaders. 5) Twins (14-8, 4) It’s been a good season so far for Minnesota, but it’s not without its quirks. The Twins have lost four of six against the last-place Royals, but they have won 12 of their other 16 games. On Sunday, they received another strong start from sinkerballer Randy Dobnak, who has emerged as an early AL Rookie of the Year Award candidate. The right-hander allowed two runs over 5 1/3 innings in the Twins’ 4-2 win over Kansas City, and he carries a 1.42 ERA through five starts this year. In this unusual season, the Baseball Writers' Association of America Awards will be handed out just like any other year. Shortly after the World Series champion is crowned, we’ll have MVP, Cy Young and Rookie of the Year winners. With roughly 25 percent of the season over, here’s a ranking of the teams most likely to have a player secure at least one of the awards. 1) Dodgers Perhaps no player in the sport has a bigger early edge toward winning an individual award than Dodgers fireballer Dustin May, the clear National League Rookie of the Year Award favorite. The 6-foot-6 righty has opened eyes with an average four-seam fastball velocity of 98.2 mph and a 3.00 ERA in five starts. The success hasn’t come out of nowhere. At the moment, there isn’t a strong challenger to May among NL rookies. In addition to May, the Dodgers have two past MVPs in Mookie Betts (who is red hot and just had his record-tying sixth career three-homer game) and Cody Bellinger, plus possible Cy Young contenders in Clayton Kershaw and Walker Buehler.
