New York Yankees Starting Third Baseman Scratched From Spring Training Lineup

The New York Yankees could have another issue on their hands.

Feb 19, 2025; Tampa, FL, USA; New York Yankees third base Oswaldo Cabrera (95) fields the ball during spring training practice at George M. Steinbrenner Field. | Dave Nelson-Imagn Images

After releasing their initial lineup for Thursday's spring training game against the Detroit Tigers early on Thursday morning, the New York Yankees made a noticeable update which has fans in a bit of a panic.

About an hour after the initial lineup was released, the new Yankees lineup swapped out Oswaldo Cabrera for Oswald Peraza at third, leading to questions about why the presumptive Opening Day starting third baseman was pulled from the lineup with the fear being there is a new injury to a team that is being destroyed by them currently.

According to a subsequent report from Max Goodman of NJ.com, manager Aaron Boone said Cabrera's scratch is related to an illness rather than an injury.

If Boone is in fact being truthful, it sounds like this could be very minor and Cabrera would return to the field as soon as the next day or two.

After a calf injury to frequently-hurt veteran DJ LeMahieu, which is slated to hold him out for Opening Day and potentially even longer, New York's thin depth in the infield is being tested.

Without LeMahieu in the picture for now, Cabrera is likely the best option with Peraza filling in as well.

The severity of the supposed illness for Cabrera is not known at this time, but it doesn't sound like something which will force him to miss an extended period of time.

After weeks of bad headlines in this department, however, Yankees fans are understandably paranoid and will eagerly await for confirmation from the team that Cabrera is fine.