TAMPA – It only took a day for the first injury concern of Yankees camp to pop up.
Cam Schlittler is dealing with mid-back inflammation and he is also feeling some in his lat, the right-hander said Thursday, though he described his level of concern as “zero” and insisted the Yankees are just being cautious by keeping him off the mound for a few days.
Last year’s breakout star indicated he has been dealing with the issue for a few weeks, but he will continue to throw and hopes to get back on the mound for a bullpen session by next week.
“It’s just so insignificant,” Schlittler said at Steinbrenner Field. “It’s very minor. We’re just taking some precautions for a few days and that’s really it.… I’ve been dealing with it for a little bit, so just want to make sure I’m on top of it and ready for Opening Day and that week in San Fran[cisco].”
The Yankees are already set to open the season with Carlos Rodón, Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt on the injured list, and while they claim they feel good about their starting depth, they can ill afford to lose Schlittler on top of all that.
The 25-year-old, who posted a 2.96 ERA in 14 starts last season before dazzling against the Red Sox in the AL wild-card series, got tests done on his back that came back with “good news,” Aaron Boone said.
“Just want to make sure we don’t turn this into something else,” Boone said. “He felt a little tweak here and there, but has been doing his lives. He’s already done two [innings] in lives, so I don’t think it’ll slow him that much.”
[Notigroup Newsroom in collaboration with other media outlets, with information from the following sources]
