Yankees return Jorge Posada to disabled list

New York Yankees catcher Jorge Posada was placed on the 15-day disabled list Monday with an injured right shoulder that might require season-ending surgery.

Posada, 36, was activated June 5 from the DL following a 32-game absence with tendinitis in his right rotator cuff.

He will be examined Tuesday by New York Mets physician Dr. David Altchek, who will conduct an MRI and determine the extent of the damage to Posada's labrum. 

"It is just really, really tough," Posada said. "Right now, I'm going through tough times."

Posada's shoulder problems have plagued him since spring training, but he is hitting .268 with three home runs, 22 runs batted and 18 runs scored in 51 games this season — prompting speculation that he could still serve as New York's designated hitter.

"I don't want to miss the year," Posada said. "I still want to help out.

"But I have still got to look at the option of next year. We will see."

"There is some frustration from Jorge's standpoint that his arm didn't bounce back the way he wanted it to," Yankees manager Joe Girardi noted. "We just felt that maybe he cannot come back as a catcher right away.

"But we still believe that Jorge can be productive. Maybe the rest will help him feel a little bit better."

Posada, a veteran switch-hitter, averaged a team-high and a career-best .338 for the Yankees last season — 51 points higher than his previous best of .287 in 2000.

The six-time all-star is a lifetime .277 hitter with 221 HRs, 883 RBIs and 762 runs in 1,483 MLB games since he debuted with the Yankees on Sept. 4, 1995.

Posada hasn't played since Saturday's 4-3, 12-inning victory over the Oakland Athletics, when he was lifted in favour of reserve catcher Jose Molina in the 10th.