Yankees' Aaron Judge: Playing time in final week TBD
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Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Monday that he will have discussions with Judge each day this week about the slugger's playing time the rest of the way, Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News reports.
Boone indicated Sunday that there were no plans to shut Judge down for the rest of the season, but he seemed less definitive about the possibility when asked again a day later. Judge is making a 22nd consecutive start Monday and has received just three days off since returning from a toe injury in late August. The toe isn't 100 percent healed, though, and with the Yankees officially eliminated from playoff contention it's possible the team and Judge will eventually decide it's best to shut things down. Judge is not expected to require surgery on the toe.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Makes history with three-homer game
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Judge went 4-for-4 with a double, three home runs and six RBI in Friday's 7-1 win over the Diamondbacks.
He took rookie Brandon Pfaadt deep in the third and fifth innings before launching a Slade Cecconi fastball over the right-field fence in the seventh. It's the second time in 2023 that Judge has gone yard three times in a game, and he's the first Yankee in franchise history to produce multiple three-homer games in a season. Despite missing about a third of the year due to injuries, the 2022 AL MVP has slugged 35 homers with 70 RBI in only 100 contests this season.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Snaps slump with grand slam
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Judge went 1-for-2 with a grand slam and three walks in the second game of Thursday's doubleheader split with Boston.
Judge went 0-for-4 in the matinee but struck quickly in the nightcap, following a first-inning walk with a grand slam in the second. The Red Sox mostly avoided him thereafter, walking the slugger in two of his final three plate appearances, including once intentionally. Prior to the grand slam, Judge had been mired in a slump that saw him go 5-for-34 without a homer or RBI over his previous 10 games.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Goes deep again Saturday
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Judge went 1-for-4 with a solo home run, an additional run and a walk in Saturday's 5-4 victory versus Houston.
Judge belted his 31st homer of the campaign in the third inning with a 428-foot solo shot off Hunter Brown. The slugger has opened September with a long ball in two straight contests, reaching base four times in nine plate appearances during that span. However, strikeouts continue to be an issue -- Judge fanned three times Saturday and has registered a 40.3 percent strikeout rate over his past 16 contests.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Slugs 30th homer
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Judge went 2-for-4 with a solo home run and an additional run scored in Friday's 6-2 win against Houston.
Judge produced the final run of the contest with his 426-foot solo blast to center field in the fifth inning. The long ball was his 30th of the campaign, marking the third straight year he has reached that total. Friday's contest was just the 81st of the season for Judge, as he missed nearly two months due to a toe injury. The slugger's 9.4 AB/HR this year is just shy of his 9.2 AB/HR last season, when he set an American League record with 62 long balls.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Taking seat Thursday
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Judge is absent from the lineup for Thursday's game versus the Tigers, Erik Boland of Newsday reports.
Judge will receive a day of rest for the afternoon contest as the Yankees go for a sweep. He's struggled over the last week, going 2-for-23 with 14 strikeouts across his previous six games. Jake Bauers will play right field Thursday in Judge's stead.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Swats 29th homer
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Judge went 1-for-3 with a solo home run, two walks and an additional run scored in Monday's win over the Tigers.
The solo shot gave Judge his seventh homer in 10 games. However, the 6-foot-7 slugger hasn't been able to record any other hits during that stretch, posting a .179 batting average with a 38.5 percent strikeout rate across 39 at-bats. Despite missing the better part of two months due to a toe injury, Judge is now just one home run shy of reaching 30 for the fourth time in his career.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Slugs three homers Wednesday
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Judge went 3-for-4 with three home runs and six total RBI in a 9-1 win over the Nationals on Wednesday.
Judge came into Wednesday in the midst of a quiet August during which he was batting just .200 with a modest (by his standards) four homers and six RBI over 19 games. The reigning AL MVP made plenty of noise against the Nationals, sandwiching a second-inning grand slam between solo shots in the first and seventh frames. The three-homer game was the first of Judge's career, and the six RBI tied his career-best mark. Despite missing over 50 games this season due to injury, Judge has belted 27 long balls, fifth most in the American League.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Homers again Saturday
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Judge went 1-for-4 with a solo home run in a loss to Boston on Saturday.
Judge took Kutter Crawford deep in the sixth inning to break up a potential no-hitter. The long ball was the second in as many days for Judge, who is just over three weeks removed from being activated following a lengthy stay on the injured list. The slugger is slashing .250/.429/.500 with five home runs, eight RBI, 10 runs and a 20:17 BB:K over 20 contests since his return.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Goes deep Friday
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Judge went 1-for-4 with a two-run home run in Friday's loss to the Red Sox.
Though Judge's eighth-inning blast didn't make much of a dent in New York's six-run deficit, it may have helped him reset after striking out in four of his previous seven plate appearances. The slugger leads New York with 23 homers this season and is tied for second with 47 RBI despite missing over 50 games due to injury. Judge won't get anywhere close to the record-setting 62 long balls he blasted last year, but his current 10.2 AB/HR isn't far off his 9.2 rate during that historic campaign and would rank as the second-best mark of his career.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Won't need offseason toe surgery
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Yankees manager Aaron Boone said Tuesday on Jomboy Media's "Talkin' Yanks" podcast Tuesday that Judge won't require surgery on his right big toe.
Judge had indicated previously while he was still on the injured list that he might need offseason surgery to repair the ligament tear in his toe. However, it would appear that an operation isn't going to be necessary and the toe should heal on its own. Judge is sporting a .260/.456/.460 batting line with three home runs and five RBI in 16 games since returning from the IL.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Swats 22nd homer Friday
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Judge went 1-for-3 with a solo home run and two walks in a 9-4 win over Miami on Friday.
Judge clobbered a ball over the center field wall for a 464-foot solo shot in the third inning. It was his second homer in his past three games and his 22nd of the campaign. Since coming off a lengthy stay on the injured list July 28, Judge has slashed .256/.473/.513 with three home runs, five RBI and seven runs. Pitchers aren't giving him much to hit, as he's posted a 29.1 percent walk rate (against a 21.8 percent strikeout rate) over that stretch.
Judge went 1-for-2 with a solo home run in Tuesday's 7-1 victory over the White Sox.
Judge clubbed homer No. 21 Tuesday, taking reliever Tanner Banks yard for a solo shot in the eighth inning. After starting out August 2-for-20 (.200), Judge has hit 3-for-6 (.500) over his last two games and has reached safely seven times in 10 plate appearances.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Not in lineup Friday
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Judge is not in the lineup Friday against the Astros.
Judge has mostly been serving as the Yankees' designated hitter since his July 28 return from a ligament tear in his right big toe. He still has some soreness in that area and will likely continue to need regular days off down the stretch. Giancarlo Stanton is filling the DH role Friday and Billy McKinney, Harrison Bader and Isiah Kiner-Falefa will start across the outfield.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Sitting Sunday
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Judge is out of the lineup for Sunday's game against the Orioles.
Manager Aaron Boone previously indicated the reigning AL MVP would sit one game in Baltimore this weekend after being reinstated from the injured list Friday, and the skipper followed through on that statement after Judge started at designated hitter Friday and in right field Saturday. The Yankees don't have a scheduled off day until Aug. 10, and Judge may sit a couple more times during that stretch since he's fresh off the injured list. Jake Bauers will shift to right field Sunday while Greg Allen receives a start in left.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Clubs first homer since return
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Judge went 3-for-5 with a two-run homer and an additional run scored in Saturday's 8-3 victory over the Orioles.
After missing nearly two months with a toe injury, Judge hasn't skipped a beat, reaching safely three times in both games since returning and hammering a two-run homer off Taylor Wells in the third inning of Saturday's tilt. The long ball marked Judge's 20th homer in 51 games and likely provided a much-needed boost to fantasy managers who have been awaiting his return. Though he looks to be back in form, Randy Miller of NJ Advance Media reported Saturday that manager Aaron Boone planned on having Judge play in only one of the Yankees' two games this weekend, meaning the reigning AL MVP will likely watch Sunday's contest from the sidelines.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: May sit one game this weekend
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Yankees manager Aaron Boone's plan is to have Judge play in one of the two remaining games this weekend, either at DH or in right field, per Randy Miller of NJ Advance Media.
Judge made his return Friday after spending nearly eight weeks on the shelf with a toe injury, but he barely got to swing the bat. The slugger smoked a 104.4 mph lineout on the first pitch he saw in the first inning, then took a free pass in each of his subsequent three plate appearances, with his only contact over that span being a foul ball. Judge served as the Yankees' DH in his return, and he'll get another start there or in right field either Saturday or Sunday, though it appears that Boone will rest the reigning AL MVP on one of those days. However, Judge suggested he may push against that plan, saying, "l'm trying to play every one, so I've got to talk to (Boone)...I've got a lot of missed time, so I've got to get back out there."
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: At DH in first game back
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Judge is starting at designated hitter and batting second Friday against the Orioles in his first game back from the injured list.
It's possible the Yankees will keep him in the DH spot for a while as he eases back into action following a lengthy absence due to a ligament tear in his right big toe. With Judge at DH, Giancarlo Stanton will patrol right field.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Makes return from IL
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Judge (toe) was activated from the 10-day injured list Friday.
The expectation had been that Judge would be activated Friday, although the Yankees never confirmed that timeline prior to the transaction being made. The slugger will rejoin the lineup after missing the last eight-plus weeks with a ligament tear in his right big toe.
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Yankees' Aaron Judge: Expected to return Friday
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Judge (toe) is on track to be activated from the 10-day injured list Friday, Joel Sherman of the New York Post reports.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone wouldn't confirm that Judge would be back Friday when asked Wednesday, but Sherman says that's the plan, barring any setbacks. Judge played in a simulated game Wednesday at the team's spring training complex in Florida for the second day in a row and reports of his rehab in Tampa have been "positive," per Sherman. The reigning American League MVP has been sidelined since early June with a sprained right big toe.
