"He's never playing again" - Yankees fans fear the worst for DJ LeMahieu after latest injury setback during rehab

The New York Yankees returned to winning ways after a narrow victory over the Oakland Athletics on Tuesday. However, the Bronx Bombers were dealt another injury blow after veteran third baseman DJ LeMahieu’s latest setback.

LeMahieu has been missing in action since March 16 after sustaining a fracture in his right foot due to the impact from a foul ball. The 35-year-old's first rehab game on Tuesday since his injury was cut short by another injury.

LeMahieu was removed from the game by Double-A Somerset due to soreness in his right foot after just one at-bat and a brief appearance in the field in the first inning.

The three-time All-Star will return to the Bronx for further examination of his latest setback by the Yankees' medical team. However, fans were visibly frustrated by the veteran slugger's stop-start to the season, fearing for LeMahieu's future with the team.

While fans pondered over the veteran star's future, a section of Yankees faithful felt that the team rushed back the injured star without giving him enough time to recover from his earlier injury.

"They clearly rushed him for whatever reason since the doctors said it wasn't healed only like 3-4 days ago," argued @DStewart267.

"You can’t make this up with the Yankees - nobody would believe it - the MRI didn’t look good four days ago - what did they expect?" @michiganlawgrad stated.

"Honestly, why did they play him knowing he is still having soreness?" @ErnieRiv_5 wrote.

A set of Yankees fans also argued that the team shouldn't be relying on an injury-prone 35-year-old for a crucial position in the lineup.

"So it was a bad idea for Cashman to depend on a 35 year old with a known foot issue to be a vital cog in our everyday lineup? Shocker," @BD006025 wrote.

"A big disappointment since signing the contract extension," argued @yank_nyva

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Anthony Rizzo sympathizes with Yankees teammate DJ LeMahieu after latest setback

Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo, who starred in his team's narrow victory over the A's after his two-run home run, reflected on LeMahieu's latest setback. Rizzo also recalled his Yankees teammate's eagerness to regain fitness after missing a considerable chunk of action.

“I know how much he loves this team, this clubhouse, the game and how he was pushing to get back, so that’s tough,” Anthony Rizzo said. “I’m going to text him and see how he’s doing.”

LeMahieu's latest injury casts doubt on his return to the Yankees lineup, as he was expected to appear in four rehab games before joining the team for the series against the Baltimore Orioles next week.