DJ LeMahieu was still not guaranteed a spot on the Yankees’ playoff roster as of Monday, when the team held its final workout before opening the postseason against the Guardians in Game 1 of the ALDS on Tuesday in The Bronx.
Asked prior to the workout about LeMahieu’s availability, manager Aaron Boone said, “We’ll see.”
LeMahieu spent much of the workout at third base, where he could start over Josh Donaldson, who has been excellent defensively, but a disappointment at the plate since his arrival in the spring training trade that sent Gary Sanchez and Gio Urshela to Minnesota.
LeMahieu has been impacted by right toe inflammation throughout the second half of the season and has been significantly limited since the injury got worse during an August series in Boston.
Since Aug. 13, he is 13-for-81 with six walks, 15 strikeouts and an OPS of .376. His last extra-base hit came on Aug. 7.
DJ LeMahieu works out at Yankee Stadium on Monday ahead of the ALDS. APIn a five-game audition after coming off the injured list just before the end of the regular season, LeMahieu went 4-for-16 with two walks and a strikeout.
“I think it’s getting his swing,’’ Boone said of what needs to happen to get LeMahieu back. “I feel like he was still compromised [at the end of the regular season]. That’s what I was seeing.”
Boone said the Yankees would finalize the ALDS roster Monday night, with 14 position players and 12 pitchers.
LeMahieu was among the players taking live batting practice against Yankees minor leaguers after the regular workout, along with Matt Carpenter, who is expected to be on the roster after missing two months with a fractured left foot.
Giancarlo Stanton, Oswaldo Cabrera and Aaron Hicks also took live BP.
The Yankees will need Stanton’s bat to win a title, but they’d rather not rely on his glove. After opening the door to potentially using Stanton in the outfield in an effort to get Carpenter in the lineup as a DH, Boone made clear Monday that Stanton would not be used in the spacious left field at Yankee Stadium.
“We’ll see [what happens] as this thing unfolds,’’ Boone said. “Giancarlo is going to … kind of work towards that and maybe at some point in the postseason, it will be an option, but we’ll see.”
Giancarlo Stanton, left. stands with Aaron Judge on Monday. Charles Wenzelberg / New York PostAt the plate, Boone said he feels “Giancarlo is trending in the right direction over the last week or 10 days.”
Stanton went 4-for-9 with three homers, three walks and just two strikeouts over his last three games.
Gleyber Torres hasn’t played since Oct. 1 due to flu symptoms. He didn’t take batting practice on the field, but the Yankees said he was OK physically and they’re counting on the second baseman to pick up where he left off before being sidelined with the illness.
“Gleyber has swung the bat really well for us down the stretch,” Boone said of Torres, who was 27-for-69 with six doubles, five homers and an OPS of 1.137 over his final 17 games.
Oswald Peraza was “under the weather” Monday, according to Boone, but should be fine if he’s on the roster.







