ARLINGTON, Texas — After defending Alex Verdugo as a left fielder, Aaron Boone defended Verdugo again Wednesday night for not sprinting on ground balls.
The Yankees were down 5-0 at the time in their 10-6 loss to the Rangers in the top of the fifth inning when Verdugo grounded out to second base and calmly ran up the line. Boone said he saw it happen but didn't take issue with it.
“He's OK. He's tired. He's playing hard,” Boone said after the Yankees lost their third straight series. “He's done a good job of picking the spots he needs to get, getting force outs, getting double plays, getting infield hits when he needs to.”
“Sometimes I wish I could see it a little better, like when he hits a one-bounce ball to the second baseman and it gets there, but there's no question about how hard he's playing.”
When asked about “being hit,” Verdugo said, “I'm OK.”
Boone removed Gleyber Torres from the game last month after he thought a liner to left field was a home run and couldn't catch it, instead advancing to first base and cost the Yankees a run.
But the manager saw Verdugo's situation differently on Wednesday, not benching him until the bottom of the eighth inning of a blowout loss, when he had already replaced the entire starting outfield.
Verdugo, who ran into a wall trying to catch a ball at Nationals Park last week, was 1-for-3 on Wednesday.
Amid calls to promote Jason Dominguez to take his place, Verdugo has gone 14 for 41 with two extra base hits over his last 11 games.
Austin Wells' right hand/wrist soreness was a concern on Tuesday, and the Yankees briefly considered flying in another catcher in time for Wednesday's series finale against the Rangers.
But by the time he left Globe Life Field on Tuesday night, Wells had shown enough improvement that that decision was postponed, and the team continued to be encouraged on Wednesday.
Wells missed his second straight game after being hit by a 95 mph fastball on Monday, but he was available to bat on Wednesday and Boone expects him to start Friday's series opener against the Cubs at Wrigley Field.
Wells underwent X-rays and a CT scan on Tuesday to rule out any possible fractures.
Both tests came back negative, much to the catcher's relief. He said his swing “felt pretty good” on Wednesday.
Clark Schmidt is looking forward to returning to the major league mound on Saturday in Chicago after missing three months with a back injury.
“Obviously, I'm excited,” Schmidt said Wednesday. “It's been a long journey. I feel great and I'm really excited to get back here.”
The right-hander will be hoping to build off a strong May performance that saw him post a 2.52 ERA through his first 11 starts.
He's expected to throw around 75 pitches again Saturday, with Nestor Cortes likely pitching behind him as the Yankees try to figure out how to handle the rigors of their starting rotation.
“The main reason I've been so successful is that my control has been so good and my ability has held up so well,” Schmidt said. “Those two things have really worked out well in my rehab bouts so far.”
The Yankees have assigned Ian Hamilton to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre for a rehab assignment, and he pitched a perfect 1²/₃ inning on Wednesday night, throwing 26 pitches.
If Hamilton stays healthy, he could join the Yankees as early as this weekend.
Aaron Judge went nine straight games without a home run, the longest “home run drought” of the season, after hitting his 51st home run on Aug. 25. … Duke Ellis recorded his first career hit with a single to left field in the ninth inning against Grant Anderson.
