Off Topic » The New York Yankees announced

Tuesday that they have placed shortstopDidi Gregorius on the 10-day disabled list with a left heel contusion.The 28-year-old was injured when he collided with Toronto Blue Jays first baseman Kendrys Morales while beating out an infield single during the first inning of Monday's game:He was able to remain in the game to run the bases and came around to score on a Greg Bird grand slam. However http://www.rangersfanproshop.com/authentic-delino-deshields-jersey , he was removed from the game in the top of the third inning.The transaction is retroactive to Monday. InfielderLuke Voit has been recalled from Triple-A in a corresponding roster move.After the game, New York skipper Aaron Boone acknowledged there was concern surrounding the injury."Not great," Boone said, viaMLB.com. "There is nothing broken or anything like that, but he's got a pretty significant bruise, and there is some swelling in there."Gregorius was having another impressive season, hitting .270/.333/.482 with 22 home runs, 22 doubles, four triples and 74 RBI. He had been hitting .292 with five dingers, four doubles and two triples in 28 games since the All-Star break.This is just the latest injury blow to the Yankees. Outfielder Aaron Judge (wrist), catcher Gary Sanchez (groin), CC Sabathia (knee) Joey Gallo Jersey , outfielder Clint Frazier (concussion) and outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury (hip) are all on the disabled list. Giancarlo Stanton is also playing through a hamstring injury.In the field, Boone does have some options to work with in Gregorius' absence. Both the highly touted Gleyber Torres and Ronald Torreyes can play either shortstop or second. Plus, veteran Neil Walker could see time at second, although he is no longer the hitter he once was.Losing Gregorius will leave a big hole in the middle of New York's lineup, though.None of the Yankees' backup plans can replace his bat, one that has hit 20-plus home runs in three consecutive seasons.New York currently holds a seven-game lead in the wild-card race. While Gregorius' injury will make it nearly impossible to catch the Boston Red Sox, who hold a nine-game lead in the American League East, it shouldn't have a serious effect on the Yankees' playoff status. The Senior Circuit doesn't have Mookie Betts, Mike Trout, Jose Ramirez, Francisco Lindor or J.D. Martinez among its position players. That's helped three ace pitchers鈥擩acob deGrom, Max Scherzer and Aaron Nola鈥攎aintain a consistent presence atop the league's wins above replacement leaderboards at Baseball Reference and FanGraphs.The NL MVP voters should arguably gravitate toward one of those three pitchers. But while WAR is a helpful guideline in awards races http://www.rangersfanproshop.com/authentic-nomar-mazara-jersey , it hasn't and shouldn't determine who ultimately wins. That's too easy and, frankly, lazy.Indeed, the traditional measures of an MVP work fine. These aren't explicitly stated anywhere, but they generally require that an MVP be:1.A great player2. An important player on a contenderThrough the first five years of his major league career, Yelich was a great player on bad Miami Marlins teams. But with the Brewers in 2018, he's now checking both boxes with ease.Among NL position players, the 26-year-old ranks first in WAR at FanGraphs (6.7) and second in WAR at Baseball Reference (6.6). Brewers teammate Lorenzo Cain is the only position player ahead of him for the latter, mostly because of a huge gap(19 to 1) in defensive runs saved. Their defensive difference is less hugeinultimate zone rating(7.1 to 0.2) andStatcast's outs above average(16 to 3)metric.What can be taken at face value, meanwhile, are Yelich's offensive numbers.They include NL-best marks in batting average (.321), slugging percentage (.583) Ferguson Jenkins Jersey , OPS (.973) and OPS+ (157). Factor in his 33 home runs, 21 stolen bases, 110 runs scored and 104 runs batted in, and there isn't a more well-rounded offensive player in the National League.This is curiously good stuff for a guy who had previously peaked with an .859 OPS and 21 homers back in 2016. But it's also befitting of a natural-born hitter with low-key explosive power. To wit, Yelich hit fly balls and line drives at the same average speed (95.4 mph) between 2015 and 2017 as Yoenis Cespedes.At long last, Yelich's power has been unleashed in 2018.Some of that is due to him swapping Marlins Park for Miller Park, resulting in a career-best.627 home slugging percentage. Otherwise, it has to do with him pushing his ground-ball rate closer to the MLB average.Rather than fold under pressure, Yelich is only getting hotter as October approaches. He has an MLB-best 1.168 OPS and 22 homers since the All-Star break, and a 1.242 OPS and eight homers since August 29.That's the day after the Brewers found themselves in dire need of a spark upon sinking to a season-worst six games behind the Chicago Cubs in the NL Central race. Yelich has provided it while mostly hitting in pressure spots (see his 1.13 average leverage index). In so doing, he's helped cut the Brewers' NL Central deficit to 0.5 games while also elevating them into the NL's top wild-card spot."He's doing special things," Brewers manager Craig Counsell said http://www.rangersfanproshop.com/authentic-jason-grilli-jersey , according to Adam McCalvy of MLB.com. "This is what guys in [the MVP] conversation do."What might matter most is how all of this compares to fellow MVP candidate Javier Baez. He deserves credit for how he's carried the Cubs amid down years by Kris Bryant and Anthony Rizzo, but he only has Yelich beat in homers (34) and RBI (110). With an .897 second-half OPS and an .850 OPS since August 29, he also hasn't dominated the stretch run like Yelich has.By way of a 1.046second-half OPS, Atlanta Braves wunderkind Ronald Acuna Jr. comes the closest to being Yelich's peer in stretch-run hitting. He nonetheless hasn't been quite as good. And like Baez, his overall numbers don't measure up to Yelich's.If the season were to end today, Yelich could offer everything that MVP voters typically look for. Because the seasonends in only a few days, it's safe to conclude he'll keep it that way.So, what the football dude said: Christian Yelich for NL MVP. Stats courtesy of Baseball Reference, FanGraphs and Baseball Savant.