Yandy Watch 2017: The nearly Yandyless edition

Welcome back to Yandy Watch 2017, where we enthusiastically chart Indians prospect Yandy Diaz’s inevitable ascension to Major League Baseball. Then, Cooperstown. Some have evidence that he is destined to be the first man on Mars. Leaving Earth would be the freest of all the #FreeYandy outcomes.

Regardless, let’s take a look at the last week of action of for Yandy.

March 5: Did not play

March 6: Doubleheader. Did not play

March 7: Did not play

March 8: Did not play. Rubbed by two men with Turkish towels to soften his skin.

March 9: Did not play. Skin luxurious.

March 10: Did not play. Added a new PEZ dispenser to his extensive collection.

March 11: Did not play.

March 12: Did not play. Listened to “Sounds of Silence” on loop for several hours while staring at the wall of the clubhouse.

March 13: Did not play.

March 14: FREEDOM. Diaz pinch hit for Austin Jackson in the bottom of the sixth inning against the White Sox. He singled in his first at-bat, then stuck around to DH and finished up with a line-out to first in the bottom of the seventh. Skin still luxurious.

March 15: Did not play. :(

Now, before you grab your torches and pitchforks and march on the CLEFO, there’s a reason for Yandy sitting out for an entire week. He tweaked his groin. I cannot fault the Indians for taking ANY returns from injury very, very slowly.

Perhaps the most depressing thing about Yandy being hurt and not able to play is that there really isn’t any update I can make to the Yandy Watch chart.

I’m encouraged by a single and hard contact in his two at-bats, but the issue is that we have a very small body of work with which to rate him. I also worry about our ability to rate his glove without being able to see most games. Therefore, I make the following plea:

If you’re at a Spring Training game during which Yandy fields a ball, send me a detailed letter describing the play.

You are encouraged to use dialogue exclusively from MLB the Show. I am concerned that I’ll receive a dozen letters that just read, “OH AND HE BOTCHES IT!” but these are the risks we take.

Even though we have very little news about Yandy, there is news that affects Yandy. If anyone snaps pictures of him, that would also be wonderful. I only have the eight pictures USA Today provides us at the moment.

Jason Kipnis has a more serious shoulder injury than previously thought

There isn’t an Indians fan on the planet happy about this news. Kipnis is likely to miss opening day, and possibly multiple weeks of Real Baseball. This means that some kind of roster shuffling will be necessary at the beginning of the season. Will Jose Ramirez slide to second base, opening up an opportunity at third for Diaz? While intriguing, I don’t think it’s particularly likely, because:

1. Govanny Urshela already has service time and known to be an excellent fielding third baseman, and
2. Michael Martinez exists and Tito is still the manager

Since Tito took Martinez over Yandy when rosters expanded in the fall, and then put him on the god damn playoff roster, we can’t reasonably expect a change of heart now. Besides, Martinez has grit, and guts, and takes mild doses of physic to work on the bowels every morning. Maybe he’s even learned how to bunt since last season.