The New York Yankees made a late change to their lineup prior to Saturday's game as they scratched Alfonso Soriano, who has been dealing with a sprained thumb, reports Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe.
The sprain was sustained during the Yankees' series against the Orioles this past week when Soriano attempted a diving catch. Soriano reportedly was hampered by soreness during Friday's game, but played through the injury.
The Yankees had Soriano in their lineup right up until a few minutes before first pitch. Vernon Wells moved to left field while Ichiro Suzuki was inserted into the lineup to replace Wells in right field.
Soriano is being listed as day-to-day by the Yankees.
New York remains just two games behind the Tampa Bay Rays for the second wild card spot in the American League. The Cleveland Indians are also ahead of the Yankees by half a game. Losing Soriano for any amount of time will certainly hurt the team as he has been a leading source of power for the Yankees.
Since being acquired from the Cubs at midseason, Soriano has hit 15 home runs for the Yankees while posting an 824 OPS.
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