After a career that seemed to be built on toughness and durability, all of a sudden, Boston Red Sox third baseman Kevin Youkilis is becoming a major question mark health-wise.
The Red Sox announced their lineup early Tuesday afternoon, and for the third straight game, Youk was scratched due to what's currently being called back pain, and nothing more.
Youkilis has struggled out of the gate thus far, hitting just .219 with two HR and nine RBI. Last year, Youkilis posted the lowest batting average of his career (.258) with 17 HR and 80 RBI, missing 42 games during the season with an assortment of injuries, including the final two weeks of the season during which the Red Sox completed their spectacular freefall, losing the AL wild-card slot to the Tampa Bay Rays on the final day of the regular season.
While there is absolutely no evidence to suggest that Youkilis' slow start is tied in to his current back pain, one certainly has to wonder if the pain currently being experienced by Youkilis is in fact the cause of his early season woes at the plate.
Nick Punto will replace Youk in the lineup for Tuesday night's game against the Oakland A's. However, if Youk is indeed headed to the disabled list, is it now time for the debut of Sox prospect Will Middlebrooks?
Middlebrooks, a fifth-round selection by the Red Sox in the 2007 MLB draft, is currently tearing the cover off the ball at Triple-A Pawucket—a .348 average, nine HR and 27 RBI in his first 23 games, with a .708 slugging percentage and 1.108 OPS to boot.
Middlebrooks is clearly the Red Sox third baseman of the future, and while I'm certainly not ready to call Youkilis over the hill or on the downside of his career, at 33 years of age, Youk is clearly showing signs of wear and tear.
The Red Sox offense has certainly heated up over the past 10 days, and they have largely done so without the bat of Youkilis. Why not give him time to heal what ails him and give Middlebrooks a good long look?
At the very least, the Sox get to see what Middlebrooks is made of, and Youk can take the proper time to heal. Back muscles are certainly much in play for any hitter, and strength, as well as bat speed, can be severely compromised as a result.
While it may not be Middlebrooks' time full-time quite yet, it just may be his time to shine in the short-term.
Doug Mead is a featured columnist with Bleacher Report. His work has been featured on the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, SF Gate, CBS Sports, the Los Angeles Times and the Houston Chronicle. Follow Doug on Twitter, @Sports_A_Holic.
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