Yankees' DJ LeMahieu exits 1st rehab game early with sore foot

NEW YORK -- DJ LeMahieu's return to the New York Yankees from a fractured right foot encountered a setback Tuesday night.

The veteran infielder exited the first game of his rehab assignment with soreness in the foot, the Yankees announced. According to the team, he will return to New York to be re-examined by a Yankees physician.

LeMahieu struck out leading off the game for the Double-A Somerset Patriots. He then played third base in the bottom of the first inning but didn't take the field for the bottom of the second.

A few hours earlier, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said there was a chance LeMahieu could rejoin the Yankees next week in Baltimore. The plan, Boone explained, was for LeMahieu to play in games Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday.

But that likely won't happen now.

LeMahieu, the oldest player on the Yankees' 40-man roster at 35, sustained the injury when he fouled a pitch off his foot in a spring training game March 16. He missed the 2022 postseason with a broken toe in his right foot that led to ligament damage.

A two-time batting champion, LeMahieu struggled in the first half of last season before a strong second half, finishing with a career-low .243 batting average with 15 home runs in 136 games.

Oswaldo Cabrera has started 18 of the Yankees' 24 games at third base in LeMahieu's place this season.