Berti (groin) has resumed hitting in the cage and is also taking part in defensive work and a running progression, Meredith Marakovits of YES Network reports.
A left groin strain has kept Berti on the injured list since last Saturday, though it appears the 34-year-old has made some progress in his recovery. The goal is for him to begin a rehab assignment sometime next week, though it's unclear how many games he will play in the minors before rejoining the active roster.
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Yankees' Jon Berti: Headed to injured list
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The Yankees placed Berti on the 10-day injured list Saturday with an adductor injury, Erik Boland of Newsday reports.
Berti is slashing .211/.250/.211 across 21 plate appearances to start the season, and he will now be unavailable for at least the next 10 days. Kevin Smith was selected from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in a corresponding move in order to make up for lost depth in the Yankees' infield.
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Yankees' Jon Berti: Takes seat in third straight game
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Berti is out of the lineup for Wednesday's game against the Diamondbacks.
Berti will stay on the bench for a third game in a row after making his first start with the Yankees in 4-3 win over the Astros on Sunday, when he went 1-for-4 with an RBI. Though DJ LeMahieu (foot) is facing an uncertain timeline for a return, Berti looks like he'll be ticketed for a utility role while the hot-hitting Oswaldo Cabrera operates as the club's primary third baseman.
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Yankees' Jon Berti: Logs RBI in Yankees debut
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Berti went 1-for-4 with a run batted in during Sunday's win over the Astros.
After being acquired by New York right before Opening Day, Berti was given a few days to get acclimated with the team before drawing the start Sunday. While he entered the lineup in the wake of Anthony Volpe's (illness) sudden absence, he's expected to work in at third base for the duration of DJ LeMahieu's (foot) IL stint. Berti's RBI came in the fourth, driving in Anthony Rizzo on a single off Astros starter J.P. France.
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Yankees' Jon Berti: Joining lineup Sunday
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Berti was a late addition to the lineup for Sunday's game against the Astros, and he's starting at third base and batting seventh.
Berti was expected to start Saturday before ultimately being excluded from the lineup, but the reverse happened Sunday, as he was initially absent from the starting nine. The 34-year-old will make his first start with the Yankees, as Anthony Volpe was a late scratch due to an illness.
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Yankees' Jon Berti: Not starting after all
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Berti isn't in the Yankees' lineup for Saturday's game against Houston despite manager Aaron Boone saying Friday that the utility man was slated to start in the contest.
Berti was acquired in a trade with the Marlins on Wednesday but has yet to get into a game this season. Per Bryan Hoch of MLB.com, Boone said Friday that Berti was expected to start Saturday, but that has not come to pass. Instead, Oswaldo Cabrera is starting at third base for the third straight day, and it may be difficult for Boone to pull his bat from the lineup as long as he keeps swinging a hot bat -- through two contests, Cabrera has gone 6-for-9 with a home run and four RBI.
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Yankees' Jon Berti: Slated to make first start Saturday
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Berti is expected to start for the Yankees against Houston on Saturday, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.
Berti was in consideration to start at third base Opening Day after the Yankees acquired him from Miami on Wednesday, but he ultimately gave way at the hot corner to Oswaldo Cabrera. Cabrera started the Yankees' second game as well and has been red hot to start the campaign with a .667/.667/1.111 slash line, a home run and four RBI through nine plate appearances, which may be making Berti's presence less urgent in the wake of DJ LeMahieu beginning the campaign on the injured list due to a foot injury. Nonetheless, Berti's versatility and speed should help him get into the lineup on a relatively frequent basis.
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Yankees' Jon Berti: On bench after late arrival
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Berti is not in the lineup for Thursday's opener in Houston, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports.
After the Yankees acquired him from the Marlins on Wednesday, Berti hopped a flight to Houston but didn't land until 2 a.m. local time, so Yankees manager Aaron Boone elected to start Oswaldo Cabrera over Berti at third base. Both players should see at-bats at the hot corner until DJ LeMahieu (foot) is ready to return from the injured list.
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Yankees' Jon Berti: Could play Thursday
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Manager Aaron Boone said Berti could start at third base Thursday against the Astros if he arrives in Houston with enough time to prepare, Brendan Kuty of The Athletic reports.
Berti was acquired from the Marlins in a three-team trade Wednesday, and it's possible he's in the lineup for the Yankees a day later for Opening Day. The super-utility player should see significant action at the hot corner early in the season with DJ LeMahieu (foot) and Oswald Peraza (shoulder) beginning the campaign on the injured list.
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Yankees' Jon Berti: Traded to Yankees
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The Yankees acquired Berti from the Marlins on Wednesday in a three-team trade involving the Rays, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports. John Cruz and Shane Sasaki were sent to the Marlins and Ben Rortvedt went to the Rays in the deal.
Berti provides the Yankees with some protection in the infield with both DJ LeMahieu (foot) and Oswald Peraza (shoulder) sidelined, and he's capable of handling the outfield, as well. He could get some starts at third base early on in the season while LeMahieu is out.
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Marlins' Jon Berti: Ready for utility role
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Berti got the start at third base and went 0-for-3 with a walk and a run scored in Sunday's Grapefruit League game against the Mets.
Batting leadoff, Berti drew a free pass off a tiring Jose Quintana in the fifth inning, advanced to third on a Dane Myers single and came around to score on a Jesus Sanchez groundout. Berti has seen most of his action this spring at the hot corner but has also played shortstop for a few games, batting .250 (7-for-28) with a 3:9 BB:K and one steal in two attempts. The 34-year-old will fill a utility role in the Marlins' infield again this season, and while his 16-for-22 performance on the basepaths in 2023 was disappointing, he did record an average sprint speed in the 95th percentile. A bounce-back performance in the category isn't out of the question after he led the majors with 41 steals in 2022.
Berti will slot back into a utility role since Tim Anderson signing with the Marlins on Thursday, Aaron Gleeman of The Athletic reports.
Adding a shortstop this offseason always seemed to be the plan for Miami, as Berti would be a poor fit as the starter even after playing a career-high 64 games at the position in 2023. The 34-year-old has topped 400 plate appearances in each of the last two seasons while seeing time at second base, third base, shortstop and all three outfield positions, although in fantasy leagues with a 20-game threshold for qualification, he'll only be eligible at third and short to begin 2024. The bigger question for his value will be whether he can rebound on the basepaths -- after swiping 41 bags on 46 attempts in 2022, Berti failed to take advantage of the new rules last season and went just 16-for-22 on steal attempts despite maintaining an elite sprint speed (95th percentile).
Berti isn't expected to remain atop the Marlins' depth chart at shortstop as the club looks at available free-agent options, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic reports.
Tim Anderson is the biggest name still on the market at shortstop, with Amed Rosario, Nick Ahmed and Adalberto Mondesi also said to be on Miami's radar. Berti saw a career-high 424 plate appearances last season, playing 64 games at short but also 41 at third base, 15 at second base and 19 between the corner outfield spots, and the Marlins still view him as a better fit in a utility role. If the team elects not to bring in a free agent, Jacob Amaya and Vidal Brujan could also get looks this spring as potential starting options at shortstop.
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Marlins' Jon Berti: Club option exercised
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The Marlins exercised Berti's $3.63 million team option for 2024 on Monday, Jordan McPherson of the Miami Herald reports.
Berti will stick around after slashing .294/.344/.405 with seven home runs and 16 steals over 133 games this season. The 33-year-old utility player offers the Marlins plenty of versatility, but they'll likely be hoping they won't need to use him as often in 2024 as they had to in 2023.
