How Yankees' DJ LeMahieu looks different — which is a good thing
NEW YORK — It's been only three games. In spring training, DJ LeMahieu didn't even make it two plate appearances, straining his left calf in his second time up and winding up on the injured list for the start of the season.
Yet, that's the point. In three games, it's been noticeable. LeMahieu looks … spry? Stronger? More like he did in the better times of his career than his last three tough, injury-filled years?
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It's a low bar, but it means something to the Yankees, who saw him go 2-for-4 with a home run and a sparkling defensive play in a 3-2 loss to the New York Mets on Saturday afternoon at Yankee Stadium.
'He was phenomenal today,' manager Aaron Boone said.
'He looks like he's got a chip on his shoulder,' starting pitcher Clarke Schmidt said.
'I feel like I always do,' LeMahieu said. 'But I was just excited to be out there, to be back with these guys and helping the team.'
LeMahieu hammered a solo shot to right field to put the Yankees ahead in the third inning off starting pitcher Griffin Canning. Plagued with lower-body injuries (hip, toe) that seemed to affect his swing the last couple of years, LeMahieu caught up to a 94.8 mph fastball and tagged it, notching a 98.4 mph exit velocity.
DJ plays the porch! #YANKSonYES pic.twitter.com/3wVo5rbaZX
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) May 17, 2025
In the fifth, he laced a 100.5 mph single up the middle on a 90 mph changeup, showing the type of contact ability that convinced the Yankees to give him a six-year, $90 million extension in 2021.
And after a sixth-inning groundout, he walked to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs in the eighth. The score was 2-2. Reliever Reed Garrett threw a 97.9 mph sinker and LeMahieu was ready, ripping it 106.6 mph to right field. Unfortunately for the Yankees, it was almost right at right fielder Juan Soto.
'Really encouraging to see him having those level of at-bats in his first few outings here,' Boone said.
LeMahieu impressed defensively in the seventh inning. The speedy Francisco Lindor hit a grounder up the middle. LeMahieu slid, backhanded it and fired to first for the out. The Yankees' dugout erupted after the play. Schmidt, who had just given way to Mark Leiter Jr., pounded the padding on the dugout fence in excitement.
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LeMahieu also nearly made a nice diving play in the ninth with one out, ranging to his left to stop a Brett Baty grounder. But he couldn't come up with it to make the throw.
'He's always been a great fielder,' Boone said. 'The injuries have taken him off the field. He's never not been outstanding in the field when he's been out there. That's who he is. He's an elite defender.'
Still, the eye test says LeMahieu looks different. He doesn't look like he's moving slowly in pregame warmups. He doesn't look overmatched at the plate. He seems to be moving with a bit more fluidity, more confidence.
It's been tough for LeMahieu. When the Yankees signed him to his long-term deal, he was coming off winning an American League batting crown (.364) in the COVID-19-shortened 2020 season. In 2019, he finished third in the MVP race, hitting .327 with 26 homers. They figured he would age well because he wasn't a power hitter. His primary skill was spraying the ball around the field — a profile they figured would be easier to maintain.
But injuries took their toll. In September 2022, he suffered a toe injury that kept him out of the playoffs. The toe injury seemed like it may have lingered in 2023 when he hit just .243 in 136 games. And in 2024, he played just 67 games, dealing with a fracture in his right foot and then a right hip impingement.
He also seems comfortable back at second base, a position he didn't play at all last year and just sparingly in 2023.
The Yankees said LeMahieu's rehab assignment went well as he finished 12-for-27 (.444).
'He looks fresh and like he's got his legs under him,' Schmidt said.
The typically stoic LeMahieu seemed to be feeling it, too. He pumped his fist emphatically after his home run.
'I don't think it was too much emotion,' he said, smiling. 'Maybe for me.'
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'Anytime you see DJ LeMahieu throwing fist bumps or fired up, it's a good sign that it's a high-intensity game,' Schmidt said.
It was understandable that LeMahieu would get hyped up. He hadn't homered in the majors since July 31. And it had been a while since he had been a reliable member of the Yankees' lineup.
Who knows if it will continue. He has to stay healthy, which has been difficult for him lately. But he at least looks better than he has in quite some time. With Oswaldo Cabrera (fractured ankle) out for the season and with Jazz Chisholm Jr. (oblique strain) not ready to return, a productive LeMahieu would mean a lot to the bottom of the Yankees' order.
So far, he's given them reason to think it could happen.
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