Yankees have their bases covered if Josh Donaldson lands on IL

The Yankees getting rained out in Baltimore Thursday gave them a full extra day to make a decision on Josh Donaldson.

The third baseman left Wednesday’s 4-2 victory over the Phillies after the second inning with what the team called right hamstring tightness.

The 37-year-old Donaldson, coming off of a poor 2022 season at the plate and again off to a slow start this season, said after the game he still felt soreness in the hamstring and didn’t rule out having an MRI Thursday.

The Yankees don’t have to make a call on Donaldson, as far as a stint on the injured list is concerned, until Friday, which is when they open a three-game series in Baltimore against the Orioles.

“I don’t think it’s too severe, but it’s a hamstring,” Aaron Boone said. “We’ll see.”

It was not clear as of late Thursday afternoon if Donaldson, who felt the hamstring tighten up as he ran to first base on a second-inning flyout Wednesday, will require time on the IL.

If Donaldson, 2-for-16 with a homer and six strikeouts through the first five games, does need time there, the Yankees should be well covered. They have terrific organizational depth when it comes to infielders, both in the big leagues and at the minor league level (where shortstop prospect Oswald Peraza, for example, is currently playing with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre).

Utilityman Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who replaced Donaldson in the field Wednesday, is a former Gold Glove winner at third (in 2020 with the Rangers) and certainly an option.  He would no doubt get some more games there, but he also has more or less become the backup option in centerfield (behind Aaron Judge), and the Yankees have liked what they’ve seen so far out there from their 2022 shortstop.

DJ LeMahieu, a three-time Gold Glove winner at second and a Gold Glove winner last season in the Utility Player category, is the most likely candidate to get the bulk of playing time at third.

The 34-year-old LeMahieu won three of those Gold Gloves at second – while a member of the Rockies in 2014, ’17 and ’18 – but with Gleyber Torres off to the start he is at the plate, he’ll continue to see the majority of playing time at second.

LeMahieu, who is also Anthony Rizzo’s backup at first, has proven to be a more than capable third baseman when called upon. LeMahieu has appeared in 191 games in his career at third, including in 47 games last season with the Yankees. With everyone healthy, LeMahieu essentially doesn’t have a single position open for him on a daily basis, another reason it may make the most sense to slide him into everyday duty, or mostly everyday duty, at third if Donaldson will be out for an extended stretch.

LeMahieu, whose promising 2022 went up in flames over the last two months because of a nagging right toe injury that  kept him off the playoff roster for both the ALDS and ALCS, has had a good start at the plate this season. Going into Friday, LeMahieu is 6-for-20 (.300) with one homer, two doubles, a triple and a 1.014 OPS over his first five games.

Rookie Oswaldo Cabrera can also play third but he’s the least likely member of the roster to get a lot of time there with a prolonged Donaldson absence because the Yankees value his versatility, which includes the ability to play all three outfield spots.

As for Donaldson, he wasn’t sure what to expect with the hamstring and a possible IL stint.

“I think we’re just going to kind of see how it responds (Thursday),” he said. “We’ll go from there.”