Chris Parmelee waited a decade for a night like Wednesday, for a moment that so many players he knows will never experience.
After Thursday night, his moment will have to wait longer.
Shortly after strengthening his case as starting first baseman by driving in the Yankees’ first run with an opposite-field single, Parmelee was hobbling off the field with an injured right hamstring. Manager Joe Girardi said he would be “completely shocked” if Parmelee wasn’t placed on the disabled list.
Now, who knows if and/or when his moment will come again? Now, who knows who will play first base for the Yankees?
In a 10-year, 10-team professional career spent mostly in the minor leagues, the 28-year-old made history in his first start with the Yankees, joining Roger Maris as the only players to hit two home runs in their first start with the team.
Parmelee, who previously played for the Twins and Orioles, came to The Bronx having played nearly three times as many games in the minors (898), but because of a season-ending injury to Greg Bird, he was offered a minor league deal with the Yankees in late February. Because Mark Teixeira hit the disabled list on June 4, Parmelee was called up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
His opportunity nearly never came.
“You just have to keep waiting down wherever you’re at and be ready for an opportunity like this,” Parmelee told The Post before the Yankees’ 6-3 win over the Angels. “You never know when this opportunity will present itself.”
Including Bird, the Yankees have now lost four first basemen to injury this year.
“You don’t see this,” Girardi said. “People ask about depth, you’re usually not four deep or five deep at first base … It’s hard, but we’ve got to find a way to overcome it.”
On the final out of the seventh inning, Parmelee stretched from the bag and suffered the injury while doing a split on a throw from Didi Gregorious, needing Girardi and a trainer to help him off the field.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen that happen before, so I was a little bit in shock when I saw it,” Girardi said.
With Dustin Ackley out for the season with a shoulder injury and Teixeira’s knee injury expected to keep him out at least three weeks — and potentially the rest of the season if he requires surgery — rookie Rob Refsnyder could see significant time at first base, where he has made four starts this season.
“He’s done a good job over there,” Girardi said of Refsnyder. “The plays that he’s had to make, he’s made them.”
While Refsnyder knew the injury would increase his playing time, he was saddened to see how quickly Parmelee’s opportunity was taken from him.
“It’s terrible. Parm’s an incredible guy,” Refsnyder said. “He’s been playing really, really well. He’s been swinging it, finding his groove. I really feel for him.”
Girardi planned to speak with general manager Brian Cashman after the game to discuss all potential options, which could include calling up a catcher and using Austin Romine at first base, where the backup catcher has played in three career games.
Another potential option involves bringing up Nick Swisher, the 35-year-old former Yankee who is currently hitting .238 at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.