NEW YORK -- Yankees catcher Jorge Posada has a torn hamstring tendon in his left knee and will be sidelined at least a
few days.
Posada wasn't placed on the disabled list following his MRI exam
that revealed the injury, but the club said Thursday that it
planned to call up a catcher from the minor leagues on Friday.
Posada is scheduled to be evaluated in the next few days.
It is the latest in a string of injuries that have hit the
Yankees recently.
Posada was not in the starting lineup Wednesday for New York's
8-6 victory over Boston because his hamstring was sore from the
night before. Kelly Stinnett, the only other catcher on the team,
started and batted ninth against the Red Sox.
Posada also missed most of last weekend's Subway
Series against the Mets when back spasms in the opener forced him
to come out.
New York just got outfielder Gary Sheffield back in the lineup
this week after he missed 16 games with a contusion and sprain of
his left wrist and hand.
Starting pitcher Jaret Wright also was hurt Tuesday in the same
game in which Posada went down. Wright tweaked his groin and left
after five shutout innings. His status for his next start hasn't
been determined yet.
New York is already missing Carl Pavano, who has been out of the
majors since June 27 after a spate of injuries.
The Yankees said Thursday that Pavano had successful
arthroscopic surgery to have a bone chip removed from his right
elbow. The operation was done by Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham,
Ala.
Pavano left a rehab start for Double-A Trenton last week after
only nine pitches because of forearm soreness. He will not be able
to resume a throwing program for at least six weeks.
Andrews also removed bone chips from the same right elbow on
Aug. 22, 2000, and Pavano did not pitch in the majors again until
the next Aug. 15.
The 30-year-old Pavano is in the second year of a $40 million,
four-year contract. He was 4-6 with a 4.77 earned-run average last season, which
was cut short by rotator cuff tendinitis.