Longtime Guardians staple held off Yankees ALDS roster after minimal Wild Card impact

Earlier today the New York Yankees unveiled their roster for the ALDS, with almost all of the attention being paid to Aaron Judge’s absence stemming from a calf injury he suffered in the middle of September. 

But he wasn’t the one Yankees position player left off the roster for the series, as the New York elected to replace former Guardians shortstop Amed Rosario on their roster with pitcher Ryan Weathers, who missed the ALDS while rehabbing from a left flexor strain. 

It’s the only change to the Yankees’ roster after they blew out the Red Sox in the Wild Card Series. 

Speaking of the Wild Card Series, Rosario made one start against Boston last round, going 0-for-1 with a walk before being pulled in the fifth inning. 

The Yankees held Amed Rosario off their ALDS roster

Although the Yankees clearly thought Rosario brought enough to the table to hold a roster spot against the Red Sox that seems to have gone by the wayside thanks to the addition of Weathers, who the Yankees acquired in a trade with the Marlins in the offseason in exchange for four prospects.  

It wasn’t that long ago that Rosario was viewed as a mainstay on the Guardians’ roster. In fact, he tallied 29 at-bats at the top of the Guardians’ lineup in the 2022 postseason. 

Whether that happened because the Guardians felt they needed to because they needed to after he was a big part of the return for Francisco Lindor or because the team actually viewed him as an everyday player, he was a part of the plans. 

The Guardians traded him to the Dodgers less than a year later, and he’s bounced around MLB since.

This is his second season working as a utility man for the Yankees — a far cry from his time in Cleveland where it was shortstop or bust. 

Rosario ended up going 3-for-10 last year in his brief stay on the Yankees’ postseason roster, but it’s hard to believe he’s going to get that much run this postseason unless the Yankees decide to add him to their roster in the ALCS (the only way he’ll be eligible to play in the ALDS is if someone gets hurt). 

Meanwhile, it can’t be overstated how much Judge’s injury hurts the Yankees. They were able to weather the storm without him in the Wild Card Series, but the ALDS will be a much different story since they’re taking on the No. 1 seed Rays. 

Judge seemed to be trending toward playing, but the Yankees likely didn’t want to risk him hurting himself again and then being out for the ALCS. That could end up becoming the Guardians’ problem later this month (so long as they turn things around against the White Sox). 

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