Aaron Hicks was still walking through the Yankees’ clubhouse with a noticeable limp on Wednesday, but he appears to have avoided the worst after fouling a ball off his right shin Tuesday night.
The outfielder was forced to leave the loss to the Reds early, though X-rays and a CT scan both came back negative. The shin contusion kept Hicks out of the lineup Wednesday, but he said he believes he can be back by the series against the Red Sox this weekend.
“I was just hoping it wasn’t broken or some kind of fracture or something,” Hicks said before the Yankees’ 7-6 extra-innings win.
“I’m feeling better today. I had trouble walking [Tuesday]. But today it’s a little bit better. I got more flexion in my ankle. I’m able to actually move it up and down. So it’s better.”
Hicks had no plans to do any baseball activities on Wednesday, but instead was set to receive treatment to try to improve his mobility.
The injury came at a bad time for Hicks, who was just starting to slug. In his last eight games before Tuesday, he was batting .385 with three doubles, a triple, three home runs and a 1.423 OPS. The seven extra-base hits were one more than he had in his first 69 games of the season combined.
“It’s frustrating,” Hicks said. “It sucks, because I felt good at the plate. An injury like this, it’ll kind of stop you from doing what you love and slows everything down.”
Potential trade target Andrew Benintendi is one of 10 Royals who will be placed on the restricted list for their upcoming series against the Blue Jays in Toronto because they are unvaccinated.
The Yankees have had talks with the Royals about Benintendi, The Post previously reported, though it remains to be seen how the outfielder’s vaccination status could affect his trade viability. The Yankees, who are fully vaccinated, have a three-game series in Toronto in September and could also face the Blue Jays in the playoffs.
Domingo German (shoulder impingement) threw a bullpen session at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday with the team tentatively planning on having him make a fifth rehab start Friday for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. But manager Aaron Boone said “that could conceivably change over the next 24-48 hours.”
“We’ll see,” Boone said when asked what could alter that plan. “Life. Baseball.”
After tossing 3 ²/₃ innings in relief of the injured Luis Severino, JP Sears was optioned to Triple-A SWB.
The Yankees were still deciding on the next step for reliever Jonathan Loaisiga (shoulder inflammation), who made a second rehab appearance Tuesday with SWB. He could rejoin the bullpen or make another rehab outing before being activated.
The Yankees on Wednesday released Greg Bird from his minor league contract. The 29-year-old first baseman, who re-signed with the Yankees late in spring training after not making the Blue Jays’ roster, was batting .218 with six home runs and a .679 OPS in 59 games with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Everson Pereira, the Yankees’ No. 10 prospect per MLB.com, has been promoted to Double-A Somerset. The 21-year-old outfielder was hitting .274 with an .809 OPS in 73 games with High-A Hudson Valley this year.