ALCS: Michael King and Injured Yankees Relievers Travel With Club

King opted to rehabilitate his injury in New York — with the blessing of the Yankees’ physical therapists — as opposed to doing so at the organization’s complex in Tampa, Fla. That allowed him to cheer on and learn from a group he calls his “best friends.”

King turned into an excited spectator when his pals Marinaccio and Greg Weissert, a rookie right-hander, helped fill the void created by his absence, and he bonded with Effross — who found out he needed Tommy John surgery before the playoffs — on the injured list. The right-hander Clay Holmes also gave King someone he could relate to, as the closer’s own Tommy John procedure sidelined him during his time as a prospect.

“I feel for him because I’ve kind of been in his shoes a little bit,” Holmes said. “You know, having T.J. and just understanding kind of what that’s like, in some sense, just missing out.”

King is not the only Yankees reliever to have traveled with the team during the playoffs, creating a sharp contrast with Aroldis Chapman, the team’s former closer, who did not report for a mandatory workout before the playoffs and was left off the team’s rosters for the A.L.D.S. and A.L. Championship Series.

Chad Green, out since May because of Tommy John surgery, and Zack Britton, whose own Tommy John comeback lasted just three games, were in the Bronx for the A.L.D.S. Britton drove from his home in Austin, Texas, to Houston for the A.L.C.S., and Marinaccio went too despite not making the roster because of a shin injury.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/21/sports/baseball/michael-king-yankees.html