The New York Yankees just got done wiping champagne from their goggles, yet it’s back to work Wednesday night when the Bronx Bombers visit the Houston Astros for Game 1 of the American League Championship Series at Minute Maid Park.
As such, the Yankees, who defeated the Cleveland Guardians in Game 5 of the AL Division Series on Tuesday night in New York, announced their ALCS roster, which features a few notable changes.
The Yankees added Oswald Peraza, Frankie Montas and Greg Weissert. They subtracted Aaron Hicks, Marwin González and Lucas Luetge.
The full roster is below.
Hicks’ removal from the roster comes on the heels of a knee injury suffered Tuesday. He’ll miss the remainder of New York’s postseason run.
Peraza’s inclusion is interesting because the Yankees benched Isiah Kiner-Falefa for the final two games of their ALDS against the Guardians. Kiner-Falefa, a glove-first infielder, slashed .261/.314/.327 with four home runs, 48 RBIs and 22 stolen bases in his first season as New York’s starting shortstop, and the Yankees could look for an offensive spark at the position with Peraza, a top-100 prospect who made his MLB debut in September.
Kiner-Falefa is penciled into the Game 1 starting lineup, playing shortstop and batting eighth, but Peraza, whom MLB Pipeline ranks as the Yankees’ No. 3 prospect (No. 50 overall), slashed .306/.404/.429 with a homer, two RBIs and two stolen bases in 18 big league games (57 plate appearances) down the stretch. The latter clearly has a higher ceiling ahead of the series.
Montas, acquired from the Oakland Athletics at the MLB trade deadline, hasn’t pitched since Sept. 16 due to a shoulder injury. The veteran right-hander usually is a starter — he struggled in eight starts with the Yankees — but he’s expected to pitch out of New York’s bullpen in the ALCS.
Luetge-for-Weissert represents a righty-for-lefty reliever swap.
Also of note: outfielder Andrew Benintendi, infielder DJ LeMahieu and reliever Ron Marinaccio remain off the Yankees’ roster for the ALCS.
