New York Post | Greg Joyce: After being held out of the starting lineup for all three games of the Yankees’ sweep over the Cardinals this weekend, it remains unclear when Giancarlo Stanton will return, with both the slugger and his manager unwilling to commit to his use in the field this week in Tampa. “Just don’t want to put anyone in harm’s way,” said Aaron Boone, who revealed Stanton has been dealing with lower-body soreness after playing three straight games in right field last week in his first action in the field this season. The veteran is unlikely to land on the IL, per Boone. The logjam was prompted by a right elbow flexor strain that’s limited Aaron Judge to DH duty since coming off the IL. The Yankees captain has been playing catch in his rehabilitation, with the next step being throwing to bases. “I’m going to leave that to trainers and Judgey,” said Boone when asked when that progression will occur. “Basically I’m waiting on the trainers to say, ‘All right, we’re ready to go with it.’”
New York Post | Greg Joyce: Saturday’s seven-run blowup against the Cardinals was the nadir in what’s been a challenging second half for Max Fried. The left-hander, who has a 6.80 ERA over his last eight starts, acknowledged the slide, telling the Post, “I definitely have to change something and change it up quick.” Fried discussed the fact that he has been working hard to make adjustments in between starts during his recent struggles, though clearly that work has not translated to success. The 2025 All-Star did retire 11 of 12 batters in the middle of his outing Saturday, providing a sliver of light at the end of the tunnel. “Even the elite-level pitchers go through things like this at times,” said Boone. “There’s no alarming, ‘Oh his stuff’s down,’ or, ‘What’s wrong with this?’ He’s too good to not get through it.”
Yahoo! Sports | Malik Brown: Jonathan Loáisiga started a rehab assignment yesterday, as first reported by the Daily News’ Gary Phillips. The reliever has been on the IL since August 3rd due to right mid-back tightness. The right-hander had kept opponents off the scoreboard in his final seven starts before landing on the shelf. Matt Blake signaled that a roster crunch may be on the horizon after the Yankees added three relievers at the trade deadline. “If we get to a spot where all eight guys in the bullpen are performing and we got three healthy guys coming off the IL, then we got some hard decisions to make,” the Yankees pitching coach acknowledged.
PIX 11 | Spencer Gustafson: A bit of housekeeping for anyone making their way to one of the Yankees-Red Sox games later this week. MTA Metro-North Railroad will be operating extra trains before and after each of the rivalry games as well as special express Yankee Clipper trains on the Hudson, New Haven and Harlem lines. The Red Sox will be playing in the Bronx on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.