Aaron Judge is back, and the Yankees need him now more than ever.
Activated from the injured list, Judge is set to return to the lineup Tuesday against the Rockies after missing 84 games and not playing since the end of May. With only a few weeks left in the season, the timing couldn’t be much better for New York, which is trying to hold off the Red Sox and keep pace in the AL East race.
The Yankees have managed to stay afloat without their star, but the offense hasn’t looked like itself. June was rough, with the club posting a .680 OPS in its first month without Judge.
July slid even further to .660, and August brought only a modest bump to .699, still leaving the Yankees in the bottom half of the league in that category. Before Judge went down, the picture was very different: New York put up a .766 OPS in April and a .793 OPS in May.
Judge, who has had four straight seasons with an OPS above 1.000, changes the whole shape of the lineup, not just with his own production but with the chances he creates for everyone around him.
His return arrives at a tense moment. The Yankees are four games behind the Rays in the AL East and two games ahead of Boston, which has won five straight and has been the hottest team in MLB since the start of July, going 43-18 in that span. New York is also fighting for the American League’s top wild-card spot, so every game from here on out carries weight.
The path forward is clear. If the Yankees win the division, they get a first-round bye.
If they finish second, they’d face Boston in the wild-card round, with home-field advantage for all three games in the best-of-three series. Falling behind the Red Sox would mean a trip to Fenway Park for that showdown, a scenario the Yankees would rather not face.
The schedule gives them a shot to make a move. Over their final 19 games, they have a six-game homestand against the Rockies and Mets, then a six-game road trip against the Twins and Diamondbacks.
After that comes a crucial four-game series in the Bronx against the Rays, followed by three more home games against the Orioles. The stretch from Sept. 22 to 24 in the Bronx could decide the division.
Judge chose not to go on a rehab assignment before returning, so he’ll use these final 19 games to get back into rhythm against big-league pitching. That matters for him and for the Yankees, especially with the outfield in flux. Trent Grisham is now on IL and potentially out for the season, Jasson Dominguez is back in the minor leagues, and the club is likely to lean on Judge, Cody Bellinger and Spencer Jones, with Heliot Ramos handling work against left-handed pitching.
For the Yankees, the goal hasn’t changed. They want a World Series title, and Judge is going to have to be central to that push. Getting him back now gives New York a real chance to steady the lineup, chase down the Rays and maybe even finish on top of the AL East.
In Other News...
Yankees Have A Surprise Pitching Option As Return Timelines Drag On
The Yankees have a roster puzzle on their hands, and it is growing more complicated as two key pieces work their way back. Rookie right-hander Elmer Rodriguez was optioned to Triple-A, opening a path for the club to look at Trevor MacGregor, a non-roster pitcher with no major league experience, as a possible stopgap on the staff.
Aaron Judge and Clarke Schmidt are both expected back soon, but neither is ready to be activated yet because each still has rehab work to complete. New York also does not have an open spot on its 40-man roster, so any return will require a corresponding move, which means the Yankees may need some short-term creativity before the more obvious reinforcements are actually available. [Read more 🡒]
Yankees Just Reopened A Giancarlo Stanton Decision That Changes Everything
Giancarlo Stantons rehab has taken another turn, and it keeps the Yankees in a familiar holding pattern. Aaron Boone said Stanton has not been ruled out for the season after the slugger dealt with a right-calf strain, and Stanton has already been back to hitting in practice. For a team that has had to juggle injuries and roster fit all year, the mere possibility of getting him back in the mix is enough to keep the conversation alive.
The catch is that there is still no obvious path for Stanton to return right away. The Yankees do not currently have room on the roster, so any move involving him will have to wait on a combination of injuries and other roster decisions. With Stantons contract and age already prompting questions about what comes next, this latest update does more than answer his short-term health status. It reopens a bigger organizational decision the Yankees did not exactly ask to revisit. [Read more 🡒]
Yankees Still Face One Aaron Judge Concern Boone Couldnt Dodge
The Yankees left California with a split on the trip after a 4-3 loss to the Padres, and the focus quickly turned back to Aaron Judge and where his return stands. Judge has been out since May 31 with a stress fracture in his right rib, but he has started taking important steps forward again, including batting practice and defensive work as he ramps back up.
Elmer Rodrguez was optioned to Triple-A to create a roster spot, but the club still has not put a date on Judges comeback. He is expected to face live pitching soon, which is the kind of checkpoint that usually clarifies a recovery timeline, yet the Yankees are still waiting for the final piece before they can say when their captain might rejoin the lineup. [Read more 🡒]