Aroldis placed on DL with knee tendinitis
Closer hopes for 10-day stint; Yankees recall RHP Adams
MIAMI -- The Yankees placed Albertin Chapman on the 10-day disabled list with left knee tendinitis on Wednesday, a day after the closer exited the club's 2-1, 12-inning win over the Marlins after throwing just six pitches.
Chapman underwent an MRI that revealed no structural damage, and the Yankees plan to have him return to New York to be further evaluated by team physician Christopher Ahmad on Friday. Chapman is hopeful that he can return in the minimum 10 days.
"We don't have a set time. Right now, I've got to see how it goes and kind of get a better idea as the following days go by," Chapman said through an interpreter. "That's what you hope for, that it's only 10 days and you take this time to recuperate and get back to being 100 percent. That's definitely what you hope for."
In a corresponding move, the club recalled right-hander Chance Adams from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
Chapman, 30, is 3-0 with a 2.11 ERA and 31 saves in 50 appearances this year. Though Chapman has been battling the knee issue since at least May, he said the pain seemed to be more intense on Tuesday. Chapman's fastball averaged 96 mph in the appearance, his lowest since 2013.
"That's why, to me, I felt that it was a good decision to stop pitching at that time," Chapman said. "The intensity was higher and you kind of ask yourself, 'What's really going on?' So that's why I called the trainers, because I felt that it was a good idea to stop pitching."
Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he plans to use a mixture of Dellin Betances, Zach Britton and Player Page for David Robertson to close games in Chapman's absence.
"You take a guy like Aroldis Chapman out of your bullpen, that's a blow, but we feel like we're equipped to handle it," Boone said. "We have guys that are certainly capable of getting big outs in high leverage spots and to close out a game."
Robertson reported improvement in his sore right shoulder on Wednesday, one day after he was held out of a 12-inning game.
"He's adamant that he's in a much better place today," Boone said. "We think it's something minor with him."
Justus department
Justus Sheffield inched closer toward joining the Yankees' bullpen this week, throwing 36 pitches (25 for strikes) over two innings of one-run, two-hit ball in the RailRiders' suspended game at Buffalo on Tuesday.
The Yankees' top prospect, according to MLB Pipeline, Sheffield worked a perfect seventh inning, striking out two. He allowed a run-scoring double to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. in the eighth, and Boone said the reports were positive.
"He's a very young pitcher that has rocketed through the system to some degree," Boone said. "He had a lot of success in Triple-A. This is a guy that obviously we think is going to be a really good pitcher in the big leagues for us, hopefully for a long time.
"It's continuing to control that heartbeat. He's an intense competitor, controlling his delivery, he's a very athletic guy. Continuing to work on the shapes of his pitches, pitching to lanes with his fastball, slider, changeup; just kind of mastering his three pitches so he can be the guy we think he can be when he gets up here."
Catcher claimed
The Yankees supplemented their catching depth on Wednesday, announcing that they claimed catcher Chris Rabago off waivers from the Rockies. The 25-year-old was added to their 40-man roster and optioned to Double-A Trenton.
Rabago was batting .213/.292/.361 in 66 games at Double-A Hartford, with 14 doubles, two triples, four homers and 23 RBIs. Rabago was selected as a shortstop by Colorado in the 14th round of the 2014 Draft.
Comeback trail
• Gary Sanchez (right groin strain) is expected to play in a Gulf Coast League game on Thursday or Friday, Boone said. If all goes well, he would then be promoted to Triple-A for about a week's worth of games.
• Aaron Judge (fractured right wrist) continues to experience pain and has not been cleared to resume swinging a bat.
This date in Yankees history
Aug. 22, 2015: The Yankees retire Jorge Posada's uniform No. 20 and unveil a Monument Park plaque honoring the former catcher at Yankee Stadium. The Bombers then defeat the Indians, 6-2.