Almost No One Could Imagine...

...that the guy wearing #70 in the March 20th exhibition game against the Astros would be Yankees cleanup hitter on April 25th in San Francisco?

Non-roster invitee Gio Urshela, hoping for a shot a bench job or more likely, a spot in Scranton, would deliver an RBI single as one of his two hits in that regular season game in San Francisco? No way.

Think again, Urshela -- the good field, no hit 3rd baseman who came and went from the Indians and Rays -- has become one of the mainstays of the Yankee Replacements.

Ravaged by injuries, with 14 players on the Injured List -- including twin towers Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, plus Clint Frazier, who sizzled as one of the early replacements, only to sprain an ankle and join Judge and Stanton on the shelf -- the current Yankee lineup might make fans feel cheated if they saw them in an exhibition game. But this unlikely bunch has now won 7 of 8, including 4 of 5 on their current western road trip.

Who coined that phrase, "Next Man Up?"

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