Yankees SS Didi Gregorius placed on disabled list with left heel contusion

MIAMI — A Yankees offense in need of a boost instead took another blow Tuesday as Didi Gregorius landed on the disabled list with a left heel contusion. 

“Didi’s so important to what we do,” Aaron Boone said before Tuesday night’s game against the Marlins. “He’s such an important player to us, in the middle of the lineup, in the middle of the field, he’s kind of our quarterback out there. He does so many things intangibly well. We’ll certainly miss him, but we also feel like we have some people capable of stepping up while he’s down.”

Primary among those will be rookie Gleyber Torres, a natural shortstop who started for Gregorius Tuesday night and will get most of the playing time while he’s out.  Torres went 2-for-5 at the plate Tuesday.

Neil Walker will get most of the time at second and utility man Ronald Torreyes is capable of playing both positions. 

The news was expected as Boone indicated the possibility of the DL stint after Sunday’s victory over the Blue Jays, a game Gregorius left in the second inning after a collision with Toronto’s Kendrys Morales.

Boone said his “hope” is the stint, which the Yankees backdated to Monday, will be a “short one.” 

Gregorius, who is hitting .270 with 22 homers and an .816 OPS, had been terrific in the month of August, hitting .303 with four homers and a .919 OPS in 18 games.

The 28-year-old, who has played in 118 of 124 games so far, joins Aaron Judge (26 homers) and Gary Sanchez (14 homers) on the DL. Sanchez, recovering from a right groin strain, is expected to start a rehab assignment Thursday with the Gulf Coast League Yankees.

“And then shortly thereafter he’ll head to Triple-A, and probably get a week’s worth of games there, and then we’ll see where we’re at,” Boone said.

Judge, out with a chip fracture in his right wrist, has a much less definite timetable as he’s still experiencing pain in the wrist. 

“We’ve certainly been tested,” Boone said. “I also think we’ve responded pretty well.”

The Yankees recalled infielder Luke Voit as a corresponding roster move.

Homecoming

Giancarlo Stanton, who came up with the Marlins and spent his entire career with them before being traded last offseason, held court in front of a large media contingent before the game.

“I’m going to enjoy the experience,” said Stanton who has been nursing a tight left hamstring. “This place was a huge part of my life. It’s cool to be back.”

Stanton, who refused proposed trades to the Cardinals and Giants before green-lighting the deal to the Yankees, said he had hoped the Marlins, under CEO Derek Jeter, “get it turned around.”

With the game in an NL park, Stanton made his first start in rightfield since Aug. 7.  After listening to an ovation at Marlins Park, he went 2-for-6 with a single and a double.

A-Rod appearance

Alex Rodriguez, who is a special adviser to the general manager with the Yankees and attends a small handful of games in that capacity, was in uniform several hours before the game watching early BP and infield work that included Torres and 3B Miguel Andujar.