ANAHEIM, Calif. — Joe Girardi isn’t ready to drop Derek Jeter’s frigid bat in the lineup. Nor is the Yankees manager prepared to use Brendan Ryan as a defensive replacement for Jeter.
Yet.
“I haven’t yet,’’ Girardi said before Monday’s 4-1 loss to the Angels when asked about moving Jeter down from the No. 2 spot in the lineup. “He isn’t the only guy struggling, and we put them in the fourth and fifth spot. It’s somewhat early to do that.’’
Jeter, 39, went 2-for-4 with a run scored on Monday, but grounded into a key eighth-inning double play and entered the night hitless in 13 at-bats. He’s batting .250 overall.
“After two or three weeks I was swinging good and I was young,’’ Jeter said. “Now I’m old. I guess it fluctuates. I feel good with the exception of the last four or five games. I always look at the big picture. It’s not the last time I’ll struggle for four or five games. It’ll happen again.’’
What about using Ryan, a defensive wizard, for Jeter late in games to protect a lead?
“I haven’t tossed that around,’’ the manager said. “[Ryan] hasn’t been here. I’ll look at everything when he gets here.’’
Ryan is expected to come off the DL in time for Tuesday night’s game against the Angels. The addition of Ryan gives the Yankees a full complement of 25 players on the roster. With Michael Pineda finishing a 10-game suspension, the Yankees no longer are playing with 24 men.
Pineda will go on the DL Tuesday.
Ryan, who played the last four games for Double-A Trenton, batted .320 (8-for-25) in seven overall minor league rehab games.
According to Girardi, Masahiro Tanaka’s foot is fine after taking a ball off it Saturday against the Rays. And Alfredo Aceves’ right hamstring problem suffered Sunday isn’t serious.
“He said he feels fine,’’ said Girardi, who would like to stay away from Aceves until Friday in Milwaukee, after he threw 5 ¹/₃ innings of relief Sunday.
After going 0-for-5 on April 20, Brian Roberts had five hits in 38 at-bats and looking like the Yankees would eventually need help at second base.
Thanks to a 14-for-43 (.326) stretch, Roberts has looked like a player who might have something left if he can avoid the injuries that have sabotaged the past four seasons.
“I’ve always said I’ve never lost my confidence at the plate and that’s been true this whole year, no matter what the numbers say,’’ the 36-year-old switch-hitter said. “Still, it’s good to get some results.’’
Those results weren’t the product of Roberts doing anything differently.
“My approach and everything I’ve done have stayed pretty much consistent. If I didn’t think I was hitting the ball well, maybe I wouldn’t feel that way, but I do so I think it will balance out,’’ Roberts said.
Hitting coach Kevin Long ignores the numbers and focuses on what he sees from Roberts at the plate.
“I just go by at-bats and for the most part, his at-bats have been good this year,” Long said. “I know it’s easy to say, but he really has hit into some bad luck this season.
“And with a guy with his background, as long as he stays healthy, you expect that to straighten itself out. Obviously, you hope it doesn’t take too long, but with a guy like him, who’s been around as long as he has, you don’t worry too much about him getting too down on himself. And I really haven’t seen that. If he keeps doing what he’s been doing, the results will come.’’
After going 0-for-3, Alfonso Soriano needs three hits to reach 1,000 hits in the American League. He has 1,077 in the NL and would become the seventh player all-time to get to 1,000 hits in each league.
Dellin Betances’ 16.09 strikeouts-to-innings pitched ratio was second among AL relievers to Kansas City’s Wade Davis’ 16.78. Betances had 28 strikeouts in 15 ²/₃ innings compared to Davis’ 23 in 12 ¹/₃ innings.
Additional reporting by Dan Martin