LOS ANGELES — Oswaldo Cabrera is headed back to the minors to find his offensive mojo, but the cavalry is coming back.
The Yankees optioned Cabrera to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after Wednesday’s loss to the Mariners, they announced Thursday, joining outfielder Franchy Cordero and reliever Matt Krook.
The Yankees optioned Cabrera to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre after Wednesday’s loss to the Mariners, they announced Thursday, joining outfielder Franchy Cordero and reliever Matt Krook.
The trio of demotions made room on the roster for Giancarlo Stanton, Josh Donaldson and Tommy Kahnle, who were all activated off the injured list Thursday ahead of Friday’s series opener against the Dodgers.
The 24-year-old Cabrera opened the season as the Yankees’ starting left fielder with a chance to solidify himself there after impressing in a late-season call-up last year while also providing some defensive versatility.
But Cabrera struggled offensively, batting .195 with a .538 OPS in 49 games. That included going just 4-for-34 (.118) over his past 13 games since May 16.
“Just not quite dominating the fastball like he should,” manager Aaron Boone said this week. “Usually the good swings he’s getting off are foul balls or maybe rolling over the top of one. Speaking as a hitter, you’re going through a tough stretch, you want to make sure you’re getting back to dominating the fastball and you gotta be able to control that pitch. That’s given him a little bit of trouble here lately.”
In the meantime, Isiah Kiner-Falefa has begun to thrive in the utility role, allowing the Yankees to send Cabrera to SWB and still maintain some flexibility.
Before Thursday, Cabrera had started just four of the Yankees’ past 11 games., struggling to make adjustments with irregular playing time.
“Part of surviving and ultimately thriving here is to be able to deal with the successes and failures and being able to make adjustments as the league constantly is making adjustments to you,” Boone said. “Those are the separators.
“He has a great head on his shoulders and he’s a really good player. We’ll just continue to work with him to try to make those adjustments.”
Meanwhile, Donaldson will return to third base and join an infield rotation that also includes Gleyber Torres and DJ LeMahieu. On most days, the Yankees won’t have the DH to play the extra infielder because Stanton is expected to be strictly a DH for his first two weeks back before potentially mixing the outfield back in.
With Stanton taking up the DH spot, Willie Calhoun could see some more time in left field.
He played there Wednesday night, his first outfield start since May 1, having started at DH in 16 of 27 games in between.
“There’ll be opportunities,” Boone said.
Kiner-Falefa could also see time in left, but the Yankees may need him to play center more often with Harrison Bader on the IL.
Calhoun, a former Dodgers prospect who they traded to get Yu Darvish in 2017, entered Friday hitting .360 (9-for-25) with a .905 OPS over his past six games.
Boone was looking forward to the Yankees’ first trip back to Dodger Stadium since 2019, when both teams had to trade in their iconic uniforms for the Players’ Weekend jerseys.
“I love Dodger Stadium,” Boone said. “We got two four o’clock games there. I like that, the sunset with the palm trees in the back. … There’s just that buzz — Yankees-Dodgers, June. That’s always fun.”