Yankees activate Jose Trevino, place Harrison Bader on IL - Pinstripe Alley

The Yankees made a host of roster moves prior to their game against Seattle on Tuesday, activating Jose Trevino from the injured list and placing Harrison Bader on it in his place. Adjusting the active roster to accommodate the bench accordingly, they also recalled Franchy Cordero from Triple-A Scranton and demoted Ben Rortvedt.

Trevino hit the injured list on May 18th with a hamstring strain, leading the Yankees to go with Kyle Higashioka as their primary starter with Ben Rortvedt called up to provide support. It was a pretty quick recovery for Trevino, which will be a relief for the pitching staff. Although he hasn’t provided help at the plate (.219/.265/.333, 65 wRC+) like he did for the first half of his All-Star 2022, he’s still an acclaimed defensive specialist behind the plate.

As for Rortvedt, it was nice to see proof of concept at the major league level, but with just three starts, the Yankees were clearly more comfortably using Higgy. So the 25-year-old will return to being the primary starter at Triple-A.

Bader’s absence will be a notable one, as he was electric once inserted back into the lineup on May 2nd. Ever since returning, Bader slashed .267/.295/.511 with six home runs and 19 RBI, good for a 118 wRC+. Even more impressive, Bader’s defense has anchored the team up the middle, covering the wide span of center field with a flair that made it seem almost easy for the 28-year-old. Injuries have been the one thing to hold him back in his Yankees tenure, however, and he’ll once again have to deal with being sidelined after coming up slightly off from running to first base during Monday’s game.

Cordero was a brief lightning rod for the April Yankees, hitting four home runs in his first seven games played. From April 13th onward, though, he turned back into the kind of guy that gets cut from a roster in the last days of spring training. His season numbers are fairly abysmal (.151/.182/.396, 51 wRC+), and there’s no real way to replace what Bader brought to the team in the field but Cordero’s below-average play there is going to be a striking comparison. He could end up going back to Triple-A after Josh Donaldson’s expected return this weekend, though.

Update