Will Aaron Judge be on the Yankees' ALDS roster? Here's the latest
This browser does not support the video element.
The Yankees are off to the American League Division Series, but will Aaron Judge be joining them?
That’s the pressing question with Game 1 of the ALDS looming on Saturday at Tropicana Field.
Judge was left off the club’s 26-man roster for the AL Wild Card Series as he recovers from a moderate strain of the soleus muscle in his right calf, an injury that he suffered on Sept. 16. Typically, that sort of strain requires at least three weeks to fully heal.
The three-time AL MVP is doing everything that he can to beat that timeline. Judge had four plate appearances in a live BP at Yankee Stadium on Monday, and then traveled to the home of the Double-A Somerset Patriots to take additional live at-bats on Wednesday.
Running is proving to be a bigger obstacle. Judge had been running on an anti-gravity treadmill, and progressed to running on the field before Game 1 of the AL Wild Card Series on Tuesday. But the captain has not run the bases since sustaining his injury.
The persistent treatment also caused Judge to miss pregame player introductions ahead of Tuesday’s game.
“We feel like in a couple weeks since the injury, he’s made real strides and significant improvements,” manager Aaron Boone said on Wednesday. “Hopefully, we’re in a position to make another decision in a couple of days.”
That decision is nigh. Obviously, a healthy Judge would make the Bombers more formidable. There are still other factors to consider.
For one, Judge has maintained that the plan is for him to play the outfield when he returns, as opposed to serving as the designated hitter or as a pinch-hitter. That’s in part because of the logjam that the Yankees have at the DH spot, which includes Paul Goldschmidt, Luis García Jr. and Giancarlo Stanton. The 36-year-old Stanton was included on the AL Wild Card Series roster despite last playing in a Major League game in April due to calf injuries.
On top of that, the artificial turf at Tropicana Field is not ideal for soft tissue injuries and could put additional strain on Judge’s injured calf, which Boone acknowledged on Wednesday.
“I have an opportunity to get ready,” Judge said in the clubhouse following the Yankees’ series-clinching win over the Red Sox on Wednesday. “That’s what I’ve been doing every day.”
Judge, 34, missed 84 games earlier this season with a fractured right rib before returning to the Yankees on Sept. 8. He lasted just seven games with the big league club before straining his calf on Sept. 16 at Target Field against the Twins.
Judge hit .241/.360/.511 with 18 home runs and an .871 OPS in 66 regular-season games.