Greg Bird left off Yankees American League wild-card roster

The New York Yankees have left first baseman Greg Bird off their American League wild-card roster, instead opting for hot-hitting Luke Voit.

Bird's omission was the biggest surprise as the Yankees announced their roster prior to Wednesday night's one-game matchup against the Oakland Athletics.

Voit, 27, was acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals in late July and later was sent to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre by the Yankees. But he has swung a hot bat since his return to the majors by batting .351 with 14 homers, with 10 of the blasts coming in September.

Overall, he is batting .333 with 33 RBIs in 39 games with New York.

The bird was on the opposite end of the spectrum as he batted just .199 with 11 homers and 38 RBIs in 82 games. He missed the first two months of the season after undergoing ankle surgery.

Bird finished the season in a 13-for-99 slump dating back to July 31. He hit just two homers during the funk.

New York is going with a 10-man pitching staff against Oakland.

The Athletics also announced their wild-card roster and are going with 11 pitchers, including 10 relievers.

Oakland is using an "opener" in right-hander Liam Hendriks while the Yankees are starting right-hander Luis Severino.

(With inputs from agencies.)