The pandemic canceled the 2020 minor league season, leaving thousands of players without work. We all know minor league pay is awful too, so Oswaldo Cabrera got busy to make ends meet.
Brendan Kuty of The Athletic recently sat down with the Yankees’ switch-hitting super utility player and discussed the jobs he worked that summer. There were the usuals, like painting or working for a moving company. But Cabrera, needing money to pay for a personal trainer, also made deliveries for Uber Eats, DoorDash, and even Amazon.
The root of the story is that this experience has helped Cabrera deal with his disappointing 2023 season. He was supposed to be the regular left fielder/second DJ LeMahieu. The fielding has been fine, but much-needed switch-hitting has not.
Cabrera is batting .195 with just four home runs and a .548 OPS in 58 games. Another minor league assignment could be forthcoming, this time for more than a day. Harrison Bader is coming back from his strained hamstring before Friday’s game in Boston.
Now, some of you probably recall me goofing off on Twitter and comparing Oswaldo Cabrera to Dani Rojas from Ted Lasso. We’ll stand by that comparison because it’s true. He has an infectious energy both on and off the field that makes him easy to love. Knowing his full story only seems to confirm this.
Oswaldo Cabrera worked as hard as he did in that long, hot Florida summer for one reason: Baseball is life. Literally.
His hard work paid off and will continue to in the future. We even said on the most recent Bleacher Creatures podcast that his swing needs a simple mechanical fix. He just has to find a way to lift the ball instead of pounding it on the ground.
Oswaldo Cabrera will be back with the Yankees at some point and we all know it.
But now, we can close with the most important question: What was his Uber Eats rating?
