Not much went right for the Yankees in Monday’s 4-2 loss to the Royals in Game 2 of the ALDS.
Somehow, it was the guy playing a position he’d never played before that may have been the highlight.
Anthony Rizzo’s absence with two fractured fingers in his right hand has caused a bit of a revolving door at first base for the Yankees — and it comes at the most critical time of the season.
After going with Oswaldo Cabrera at first in Game 1 of the ALDS against the Royals, Aaron Boone tabbed Jon Berti for Game 2.
Berti entered Monday having never played the position in a game as a professional.
“I feel good about him, like I do with Cabrera,’’ Boone said before the game. “Jon is a really good infielder and really looked the part with the work he did there this week. He’s athletic.’’
Despite the defeat, Berti was excellent throughout.
He helped end the fourth by grabbing the cutoff throw from right to get Maikel Garcia caught in a rundown.
And Berti was even more influential in the sixth, with runners on the corners and one out, pinch hitter MJ Melendez ripped a liner down the line that Berti caught and turned into a double play to end the inning.
“I’m doing the best I can to learn and be an athlete,’’ Berti said after the game. “I felt good overall. I don’t expect it to be perfect. I’m just trying to be a baseball player and I felt pretty comfortable.”
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Berti also extended the bottom of the ninth with a single to right.
Whether Berti gets another start at first is unclear, since Boone didn’t rule out rookie Ben Rice getting time there during the series after the converted catcher saw extended time there over the summer.
“Part of this is [Rizzo] getting hurt with two days left in the [regular] season,’’ Boone said. “That put us in a little bit of a bind roster-wise.”
Cabrera did well there on Saturday, making a nice scoop of a throw in the dirt by shortstop Anthony Volpe and credited Rizzo with working with all three of his potential fill-ins.
Berti was acquired from the Marlins as part of a three-team trade late in spring training to fill in for DJ LeMahieu, who began the year out with a foot injury.
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But Berti went down with a strained groin less than two weeks into the regular season and after returning in early May, was lost for over three months with a calf strain.
Prior to this season, Berti had played every position besides first base and catcher.
Boone said Berti played some spring training games there earlier in his career.
“I just feel like he deserves to be in there,’’ Boone said of Berti. “If we’re gonna go long in this [postseason], he’s gonna play a big role for us. He had a really good week of work over there.”
The manager also noted Berti’s speed and bat-to-ball skills as part of his decision.
He had just 74 plate appearances for the Yankees this season due to the injuries, but was productive at the plate for the Marlins a year ago, with an OPS of .804 against lefties.
“He’s a really talented infielder and brings an element to our lineup,” Boone said. “It made a lot of sense.”
