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Aaron Hicks wasn’t supposed to be here. He wasn’t supposed to be ready this soon. He certainly wasn’t supposed to be standing at home plate watching a season-saving home run clank off the right-field foul pole in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series. And he wasn’t supposed to be breathing hope into a Yankee Stadium crowd that was dreading the end.
A month ago, Hicks was sitting on the couch at his home in Arizona after receiving a second opinion about his injured right elbow. The doctor prescribed more rest in hopes of averting a major operation for the center fielder — Tommy John surgery on his throwing elbow.