Judge to miss time with stress fracture in ribs but expected to return this season
Aaron Judge has been diagnosed with a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side, the Yankees announced on Thursday. This will require a period of rest and limited activity. He will be reimaged in approximately four to six weeks to determine level of healing and appropriate next steps.
Judge is expected to return at some point this season.
Having experienced discomfort over the past several weeks that was initially diagnosed as a bone bruise near his right rib cage, Judge underwent an MRI on Tuesday at the direction of Dr. Gregory J. Pearl of Dallas, Texas, who specializes in “thoracic outlet syndrome management in high-performance athletes,” according to his practice’s website.
Judge missed his first game of the season on Tuesday after reporting discomfort during the club’s series against the Athletics in West Sacramento. According to manager Aaron Boone, Judge has been managing discomfort in his right shoulder for “the last couple of weeks,” though he only feels it when swinging.
This browser does not support the video element.
Boone said Judge could not identify a specific play when the discomfort began.
Since May 11, Judge is 14-for-68 (.206) with one home run, eight RBIs and 19 strikeouts. Overall, he is slashing .248/.375/.533 with 17 home runs and 38 RBIs in 59 games.
In 2019, Judge endured a significant issue with his right rib cage. He sustained a stress fracture of his right first rib and a partially collapsed lung while attempting a diving catch in a September 2019 game.