Yankees’ Newly Acquired Catcher Sidelined With Injury

Former Minnesota Twins backstop Ben Rortvedt is managing an oblique injury with two-plus weeks to go until Opening Day.

TAMPA — Acquired in the Gary Sánchez trade last weekend, catcher Ben Rortvedt is poised to form a defensively-minded tandem with Kyle Higashioka behind the plate for the Yankees this season.

Now, he’s in danger of missing Opening Day with an injury.  

Rortvedt is currently sidelined with an oblique injury, manager Aaron Boone told reporters prior to New York’s spring training game in Sarasota on Saturday.

While the backstop is participating in catching drills, he isn’t hitting, per Boone.

In the Yankees' clubhouse back at George M. Steinbrenner Field, Rortvedt said his oblique injury can't be traced back to one single swing. It was more so a result of his workload.

"I felt it later at night once," Rortvedt told Inside The Pinstripes. "Came in the next day, took some time, let it heal a little bit and was working back into things and thought it kind of was a little stiffer than usual and I should slow down, press off the gas a little bit so we can be smart about it and not have it leak into the season."

Rortvedt, 24, is a left-handed hitter, posting a .169/.229/.281 slash line over his first 39 MLB games in 2021.

Asked about his offense, and New York's new group of hitting coaches, Rortvedt said he's eager to take advantage of the best technology and brightest minds in baseball that are at his disposal with his new team. 

"I can't wait to get to work with them," he said. "It's making me super uneasy not being able to right now. So I'm super excited to work with them and dive deeper."

Higashioka and Rortvedt are the only catchers currently on New York’s 40-man roster. Isiah Kiner-Falefa can also play catcher (he and Josh Donaldson came over in the trade with the Twins), but he’s expected to be New York’s everyday shortstop.

"Meeting Kyle, he's super friendly," Rortvedt said. "I love watching him catch, I'm excited to learn from him and take bits and pieces from his game and implement them into mine."

Non-roster invitees Rob Brantly, Rodolfo Durán, David Freitas and Max McDowell are the only other backstops presently at Yankees camp. 

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