New York Yankees all-star outfielder Aaron Judge has been sidelined since June due to a stress fracture in his right rib. He recently took a step forward in his rehab process as he played catch for the first time since landing on the injured list. Some positive news for Yankees’ fans.
The three-time American League MVP was cleared to participate in light baseball activities earlier this month. Those activities included running outdoors and upper-body resistance training.
Unfortunately, injuries are a part of the game. Last season Judge was forced to miss some time due to an injury in his right elbow.
New York is keeping a close eye on Judge during his rehab and wants to make sure he’s doing everything necessary to make a full recovery. Manager Aaron Boone hopes Judge can continue to take steps in the right direction during his rehab. “I know he threw and ran yesterday,” he said on Saturday. “Hopefully, [he’ll] continue to progress through this week and we’ll see what else gets introduced.”
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Before landing on the IL, Judge was hitting .248 with 17 home runs and 38 RBI. Boone is hopeful that Judge will return this season, but there is no timetable on his return. The Yankees certainly do not want to rush things and want to make sure that Judge makes a full recovery.
“We expect him back, but we’re in the early stages of baseball activities, so hopefully things continue to go well,” Boone said.
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Yankees Need Aaron Judge Back ASAP!
There’s no question that the Yankees can use Judge in the lineup and help provide them with accumulating runs. With him being out, other players have to step up and create runs for the offense, which New York has the players to do so. New York is in a battle in their division with the Tampa Bay Rays, who are currently in first place. The Yankees hold the top spot in the Wild Card race.
A healthy Judge boosts the team’s offense significantly, and he has the numbers to back that up. The 34-year-old has hit over .320 the last two seasons and has also hit 50 plus homers in each of those seasons as well.
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Since Judge’s return is uncertain, the Yankees will have to find ways to produce runs and win games if they want to keep their playoff hopes alive.
Boone believes in this offense despite losing some players due to injury. “I remain very optimistic, especially with this group, because I do feel like even though we’re going to get reinforcements, this group is capable of good offense,” he said of the prolonged second-half slump. “But we obviously got to do a better job of bringing runs in.”
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Hopefully, Judge can make a return to New York this season and make an immediate impact. While he has accumulated numerous individual awards, he is still searching for that elusive World Series title.
