Yankees demote Ronald Torreyes in surprise move for Greg Bird | What it means

The Yankees surprised Saturday, sending down beloved utility man Ronald Torreyes to bring first baseman Greg Bird off the disabled list before a game against the Angels at Yankee Stadium.

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The Toe-Night Show has been put on indefinite hiatus.

In a surprise move, the Yankees sent beloved utility man Ronald Torreyes to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre before a game against the Angels at Yankee Stadium on Saturday.

First baseman Greg Bird moves into Torreyes’ place on the 25-man roster. Bird was expected to be in the lineup for the first time this season. He’s been out since the end of spring training, recovering from surgery that removed a bone spur from his right ankle.

Why it makes sense: Torreyes has minor-league options and Tyler Austin has proven himself a very good right-handed platoon bat.

Against lefties, Austin is hitting .273 with four home runs and a .931 OPS in 50 plate appearances. Overall, he’s hitting .231 with eight homers and 23 RBI in 114 plate appearances. 

Torreyes figured to see little playing time. With him in the minors, starting second baseman Gleyber Torres can serve as shortstop Didi Gregorius’ primary backup. Torres is a natural shortstop. Neil Walker can back up Miguel Andujar at third base, Torres at second base and be an emergency option at first base.

The story behind the Gleyber-Didi dance

Why it’s a stunner: Torreyes has been a glue guy for the Yankees since establishing a full-time utility role in 2016. Think about the 5-foot-8 infielders hive-fives with the 6-foot-8 Aaron Judge and Torreyes’ dugout antics.

Oh, and he’s been a really good player. In sporadic work, Torreyes has hit .339 with six RBI and a .785 OPS in 63 plate appearances, covering second base, third base and shortstop. In three seasons, he’s hit .288. He’s been a valuable defender everywhere the Yankees have used him.

Also, it seemed likely the team would either demote Austin and keep Walker as Bird’s backup. The Yankees are paying Walker $4 million and though he’s a switch-hitter, he’s much better from the left side, the same side from which Bird hits. So Walker doesn’t provide much platoon help. The Yankees could have also sent down one of their eight relievers, slimming the bullpen to a more common seven-man unit.

When could Torreyes come back? Players must spend 10 days in the minors when they’re demoted before they can return to the majors unless they’re being re-added to the 25-man roster to replace an injured player.

Brendan Kuty may be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @BrendanKutyNJ. Find NJ.com Yankees on Facebook.