The Yankees announced Tuesday that Derek Jeter will be placed on the disabled list for a strained calf, which means it will be at least 15 days before he picks up his 3,000th hit.
Jeter will be eligible to return on June 29 for two games against the Brewers and then the Yankees will travel to Citi Field for three games against the Mets. It means that Jeter's got a good chance of getting the 3,000 milestone in New York, if not at home.
The Yankees took their time making the decision to disable Jeter by letting him plead his case for remaining active, but ultimately, they made the prudent decision. Joe Girardi indicated he'd be out for at least a week, an unacceptable state of affairs for the team as they go into games at National League parks on Friday.
You need roster flexibility in those games, and with Russell Martin also ailing, the Yankee bench right now consists of two outfielders -- Andruw Jones and Chris Dickerson -- and a designated hitter in Jorge Posada. If Martin's back doesn't improve in the next two days -- and he looked awful on Sunday -- we could be seeing another move to get the team set up for the NL style of play.
Beyond those issues, there's the fact that calf injuries are notoriously slow to completely heal. Alex Rodriguez wound up needing to go on the DL after rushing back last summer and Jimmy Rollins of the Phillies was hampered by a similar injury all of last year.
The Yankees made the right call here, even if it means we'll all have to wait a little longer to see a Yankee become a member of the 3,000-hit club.
Josh Alper is a writer living in New York City. You can follow him on Twitter and he is also a contributor to Pro Football Talk.
