Another blow for Yankees bullpen going into postseason

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Yankees reliever Ron Marinaccio was put on the 15-day injured list Tuesday, another blow to the injury-plagued New York bullpen before the playoffs.

Marinaccio has a stress reaction in his right shin. The rookie right-hander threw only 12 pitches before exiting Sunday because of soreness that he has described as a lingering issue. He will miss the AL Division Series.

Manager Aaron Boone said he is hopeful that Marinacco will be able to return for the AL Championship Series if the Yankees advance in the postseason.

“Just made that kind of difficult decision right now. He definitely wants to try and pitch through it,” Boone said. “There's probably a lot that he could pitch through it. It’s kind of a gray area. But we also worry about it turning into a stress fracture” when compensating in other ways.

Before Tuesday's doubleheader in Texas, the Yankees reinstated right-handed reliever Albert Abreu after he had been out since Aug. 20 with right elbow inflammation.

Miguel Castro on Monday made his first appearance since July 10 after recovering from a strained shoulder. The right-hander came on after Luis Severino's seven no-hit innings, and allowed a one-out hit to rookie Josh Jung in the eighth.

Left-hander Wandy Peralta, sidelined since Sept. 18 with back tightness, was expected to face hitters at Somerset, New Jersey, on Tuesday or Wednesday. Boone said reliever Clay Holmes, who had a cortisone injection last week for inflammation in his right rotator cuff, was also throwing there.

Marinaccio is 1-0 with a 2.05 ERA in his 40 appearances, with 56 strikeouts in 44 innings. By not allowing an earned run 34 times, he matched the franchise record with Joba Chamberlain (2007-08) for most such games in the first 40 career games.

“He's had an outstanding season and he’s a very important part of what’s going on down there,” Boone said. “Hopefully we get him back if we can advance to the next round. This time can be valuable and can get him just a little bit healthier and stronger.”

Boone said he was optimistic about getting Peralta and Holmes back for the ALDS, which starts next Tuesday.

“So feel like we have a lot of really, really good options,” Boone said. “It’s probably not going to be those traditional roles as we go on to October. So we’ll just mix and match with what we feel like is a lot of great options.”

There is also the lingering question about Aroldis Chapman (3-4, 4.58 ERA), whose postseason roster spot may still be in jeopardy. The seven-time All-Star has walked 28 batters in his 35 1/3 innings, including three in his last appearance Sunday that led to Baltimore going ahead with at two-run seventh.

“That's one of the challenges, is that kind of hit-or-miss nature that it’s been a little bit for him,” Boone said. “We're just going to continue to try and, you know, hopefully get him in there today and in one of these games hopefully pitch well and build a little momentum there. ... It’s going to be a tough call.”

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