The Yankees’ injury bug seems to have returned for another season.
Left-handed pitcher James Paxton is expected to miss three-to-four months after undergoing back surgery to remove a peridiscal cyst, the team announced, leaving him out until about June.
Paxton, 31, is in his walk year and battled injuries for most of 2019, his first season with the Yankees.
He would have entered this season as the Yankees’ No. 2 starter behind newly signed ace Gerrit Cole.
Paxton was 15-6 with a 3.82 ERA in 29 games last season, when the Yankees saw 30 different players head to the injured list for a record 2,433 days lost.