Yankees' Luke Voit Progressing Towards Return From Injured List

The New York Yankees could be getting an important piece back to their lineup soon.

First baseman Luke Voit, who is currently on his second IL stint of the season after straining his oblique, is progressing towards a return.

Voit began a rehab assignment with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Sunday and went 1-for-3 with a double and an RBI in the contest.

The 30-year-old notched five innings at first base for the RailRiders and although he will need more time to ramp up, this performance resembles a positive sign for the Yankees as Voit took a big step closer to rejoining the big-league club.

Voit started the season on the IL after undergoing surgery to repair a torn meniscus at the end of spring training. He has missed all but 12 games, returning on May 11 before injuring his oblique two weeks later.

In 44 at-bats with the Yankees this year, Voit has just eight hits, which equates to a .182/.280/.250 slash line. He had only three RBIs and recorded one extra-base hit during this span on a solo home run.

While Voit has yet to make an impact on this 2021 Yankees team due to a slew of injuries, his presence has been sorely missed for the majority of the season. In his absence, the Yankees attempted to fill his spot with veteran Jay Bruce, who struggled with a .118 batting average, before opting for retirement back in April.

Recently, they called up first baseman Chris Gittens, who has gone 0-for-13 since joining the squad. Mike Ford also got his chance, but struggled, hitting .133/.278/.283 before getting designated for assignment over the weekend.

In the meantime, DJ LeMahieu has received the bulk of the playing time at first base, which has forced Rougned Odor into second base duties. Odor has had his own struggles, slashing .198/.273/.389 in 126 at-bats. It's clear that he is no longer an everyday player.

The re-addition of Voit would be a big boost for a Yankees team that has lost seven of their last nine, falling into fourth place in the AL East, and 8.5 games back of the first-place Tampa Bay Rays.

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