NEW YORK — A team that built its season around a deep, healthy rotation is suddenly counting arms, and now it may be counting a bat too.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. limped off Sunday with right big toe discomfort, the newest scare for a Yankees club already pitching without two of its best starters.
Carlos Rodon is on the injured list. Max Fried is working his way back. And the second baseman’s early exit turned a bad afternoon into an anxious one.
The trouble surfaced during a 6-1 loss to the Minnesota Twins at Yankee Stadium, a defeat that dropped New York to 1-9 over its last 10 games.
The stakes reach past one loss. With the trade deadline less than a month away, the health of the Yankees rotation is quietly reshaping what the front office may need to buy. A group that ranked among the game’s best could force New York into the starting-pitching market it hoped to avoid.
Chisholm exits but avoids a major scare
Chisholm’s injury traced back to an odd sequence in the second inning. After lining a single to right field, he was picked off first base while adjusting his sliding glove.
He later explained that the pickoff was not carelessness. He said he had hurt the toe seconds earlier while rounding the bag and trying to stop.
The toe is not a new problem. Chisholm has dealt with the issue since his time with the Miami Marlins in 2023, and he said it flares up without warning.
“Sometimes it comes back, a little bit of throbbing and stuff in there,” Chisholm said. “When you kinda aggravate it, it kinda hurts and you don’t move the same a little bit sometimes.”
He stayed in for a few more innings before Amed Rosario replaced him after the fifth, with Jose Caballero shifting to second base. X-rays came back negative, and Chisholm said he does not expect to miss time.
The Yankees planned to reassess him Monday. Chisholm admitted he had been in significant pain but sounded relieved by the test results.
“It wasn’t as bad as when I injured it the first time,” Chisholm said. “But other than that, huge relief thinking I’m good.”
Rodon faces the longest road back
The bigger blow to the Yankees pitching staff is Rodon, who landed on the injured list Friday with left elbow inflammation. The team did not attach a firm timeline at first.
It is now believed the left-hander is roughly four to six weeks from returning to a big league mound, which points toward a mid-August return.
The setback stings because Rodon had been reliable for the Yankees. He underwent surgery in October to remove loose bodies from the elbow, opened the year on the injured list, and was activated May 10.
Since returning, the 33-year-old posted a 3.30 ERA while averaging just over five innings per start. His walk rate climbed to an uncharacteristic 13.4 percent, but he limited hard contact, allowing just three home runs in 46 1/3 innings.
Fried inches closer to a return
There is better news for the Yankees on Fried, who has been out with a bone bruise in his left elbow. The left-hander is trending toward a return before the end of July.
After a bullpen session Friday, Fried threw simulated live batting practice Sunday morning. He fired 36 pitches and mixed in his four-seam fastball, slider and cutter.
Manager Aaron Boone said Fried will throw another live session later in the week and could then start a rehab assignment. Fried carried a 3.21 ERA through 10 starts before the injury.
Fried also used the downtime to clean up his delivery, aiming to stay more balanced and on time after feeling his mechanics were off early in the season.
Injuries push the Yankees toward the deadline
The rotation was supposed to be a Yankees strength, not a worry.
Now the math is tighter. With Rodon likely out until August and depth options like Luis Gil and Clarke Schmidt carrying their own injury histories, New York may feel added urgency to add a starter before the deadline.
Chisholm’s value makes his health matter just as much. Since May 1, he has produced a 110 wRC+, and his 2.2 fWAR ranks third among Yankees position players behind Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger, with Aaron Judge sidelined.
For now, the Yankees sit at 49-40, second in the AL East behind the Tampa Bay Rays, and open a four-game series at Tampa Bay on Monday. They expect Chisholm back soon, Fried before month’s end, and Rodon weeks later, but the injuries have already changed the questions the front office must answer.
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