Being back behind the plate is not something Jose Trevino takes lightly.
After his 2023 season ended early with a right wrist tear that required surgery, the Yankees catcher feels grateful to be playing — and playing well — in 2024.
“It’s amazing,” Trevino told the Daily News. “You don’t realize how much you love and miss something until it’s taken away from you and you can’t do it no more.”
Now in his third season with the Yankees, the Texas-born Trevino entered Sunday with a .281 average, two home runs and 11 RBI in 57 at-bats. He had recorded at least one hit in each of his last 10 starts and four multi-hit games during that stretch.
The solid hitting complemented Trevino’s trademark defensive excellence. Trevino ranks in the 90th percentile of Baseball Savant’s fielding run value metric and in its 100th percentile as a pitch framer.
Those stats help explain Trevino’s importance to a Yankees pitching staff that began Sunday with a 3.01 ERA that ranked third among MLB teams.
“He works hard,” Yankees starter Nestor Cortes told The News. “If you watch him on a daily basis here, he’s always … trying to figure out something for the pitchers, whether it’s an advantage or something they might be able to correct in their performance.”
Trevino, 31, makes up half a Yankees catching tandem with 24-year-old Austin Wells, a former first-round pick who made his MLB debut about a month after Trevino’s season ended last year.
Acquired in a March 2022 trade with the Texas Rangers, Trevino made the All-Star team in his first season with the Yankees, during which he batted .248 with 11 home runs and won the American League’s Platinum Glove as the best defensive player at any position.
“Trevy’s one of my favorites ever,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “He’s a leader in that room, and it’s just so nice to have him back and healthy and part of our catching corps. Him and Austin are on the same page and I think have done a great job in tandem. He’s got a presence with our coaching staff, with our pitchers of course, but being healthy … he just has that knack for giving you a tough at-bat in a tough situation.”
The righty-throwing Trevino’s wrist injury originated during spring training in 2023. He played through it for about four months, but his average dipped to a career-low .210 before he announced in late July that he was opting for surgery.
Trevino was back in the Yankees’ starting lineup against the Detroit Tigers on Sunday to catch Cortes, whose best outing of the year — eight shutout innings against Miami on April 8 — came with Trevino behind the plate.
Trevino also caught Saturday’s 5-3 win over the Tigers, during which Yankees starter Clarke Schmidt matched his season high with seven strikeouts.
“Me and him have a lot of back-and-forth throughout the game, and I really enjoy that,” Schmidt said. “Especially when you’re competing, trying to win ball games, it’s kind of fun to stick your feet in the sand with him and really get after guys. He has a really good feel for the game, hitter swings and stuff like that.”
The early success of the Yankees’ pitching staff has come without ace Gerrit Cole, the reigning AL Cy Young Award winner, who is working his way back after being diagnosed during spring training with right elbow inflammation and edema.
“We’re doing a pretty good job right now,” Trevino said. “We understand that the season’s gonna have its ups and downs, and whether we’re riding high or riding low, we’ve just kind of got to roll with it. Right now, we’re doing a good job. We’re gonna try to keep that going.”
COLE’S COURSE
The reports on Cole were good Sunday morning, a day after the right-hander threw off of a mound for the first time since being shut down in mid-March.
“Sounds like [he feels] good,” Boone said Sunday. “Hopefully that continues to be the case moving forward. Hopefully [he will] get back on the mound this week.”
Cole threw 15 pitches, all fastballs, in the Yankee Stadium bullpen Saturday and sat at around 89 mph, the six-time All-Star said.
“It was exciting,” Cole said Saturday. “This is a good day for me. I was fired up.”
The Yankees have not shared a timeline for Cole, who remains on the 60-day injured list.
RIZZO REST
Hot-hitting Anthony Rizzo was out of the Yankees’ starting lineup Sunday with what Boone described as a scheduled day off.
Rizzo, who delivered a walk-off single Friday and a three-run home run Saturday, had appeared in each of the Yankees’ 35 games entering Sunday.
“Wanted to be disciplined to this with the off day [on Monday], and as much as Rizz has played, just thought it was best,” Boone said.
The lefty-hitting Rizzo’s off day came with dynamic left-hander Tarik Skubal starting for the Tigers.
Rizzo, 34, missed the final two months of the 2023 season with post-concussion syndrome.
LEMAHIEU LATEST
D.J. LeMahieu (foot fracture) continues to participate in baseball opportunities, but a rehab assignment is not imminent for the infielder.
Asked Sunday if LeMahieu could begin a rehab assignment this week, Boone replied, “I don’t think so, but I don’t know.”
“I know he hit a little bit yesterday and today, but I don’t know if he’s that close to being ready for a rehab [game],” the manager added.
Boone suffered the injury to his right foot during spring training and, after attempting to play in a rehab game on April 23, left with discomfort. He was later diagnosed with swelling in the foot.