Return to the Lineup
NEW YORK — Aaron Judge returned to the New York Yankees on Tuesday night, starting in right field and batting third against the Colorado Rockies after a 99-day absence caused by a broken right rib. The three-time MVP, who had missed 84 games since his last appearance on May 31, was reinstated from the 60-day injured list Monday night, an off day for the team.
Judge traveled with the Yankees on their recent West Coast trip and took batting practice on the field multiple times last weekend in San Diego, running the bases as he worked toward his return. He rejoined the active roster without going on a minor league rehab assignment, as he had said he wanted throughout his absence.
"If I tell them I'm ready to go play, I think we're ready to go play," Judge said on Aug. 27. "I'm not a pitcher. I'm a position player. I can get my reps down here in the cage. I'm in every game. I'm sitting there in the dugout watching every game, feeling the environment, feeling the energy, so I don't think there's going to be much of a difference."
The 34-year-old was initially injured attempting to avoid second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. during an unsuccessful diving catch attempt at Houston on April 26. He played through the injury for more than a month before being shut down May 31; the Yankees later placed him on the injured list June 5. Before the IL stint, Judge batted .263 with seven homers and 20 RBIs in 31 games, but he had just one homer in his final 18 games. For the season, he entered Tuesday hitting .248 with 17 home runs and 38 RBIs.
A Rusty Return
In his first game back, Judge struck out swinging with a runner on in the first inning, flied out to deep right-center in the fourth, and took a called third strike in the sixth. All three at-bats started with 2-0 counts and ended on fastballs. He was replaced by Heliot Ramos at the start of the seventh, as planned.
The sellout crowd of 46,211 at Yankee Stadium gave Judge a standing ovation when he came to the plate. Afterward, he likened the moment to his 2022 home run chase. "It reminded me a little bit of in '22 going for 62. They're all on their feet," he said, recalling his pursuit of the American League record.
"I've got work to do. I've got to improve," Judge added.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he planned to play Judge five to seven innings and might give him a day off during the series. "I know in his mind he feels he is very much ready to go the distance, but it's my job to be smart here, especially these first several games," Boone said.
Boone also revealed that Judge had tried to be activated earlier, appearing at his door in San Diego after Trent Grisham strained a hamstring on Friday. "He actually appeared in my door in San Diego after Grish got hurt: 'Ready to go tomorrow,'" Boone recalled. "Didn't want to do that because there were some final boxes we definitely wanted him to check."
A Team Streak and a Bigger Goal
The Yankees beat the Rockies 5-3 behind Cam Schlittler, who struck out 10 in seven innings to clinch New York's 34th consecutive winning season. The streak is the second-longest in the four major professional sports leagues, behind the Yankees' own record of 39 winning seasons from 1926-64. The team's last losing record was 76-86 in 1992.
"It's a good look at what this organization has been now for decades," Boone said. "I'm happy we got there again but, yeah, obviously we've got bigger things we're chasing."
Judge echoed that sentiment: "We're the Yankees, and we're going to win. So that's a great streak, but I think everybody in this room is worried about a championship." He added, "It's one step towards winning the World Series and you've got to win a lot of games."
The Yankees haven't won the World Series since 2009, their 27th title.
Division and Wild Card Picture
With 19 games remaining in the regular season, the Yankees (81-62) are four games behind first-place Tampa Bay in the AL East and two games ahead of Boston for the top American League wild card. They hold a potential tiebreaker over the Red Sox after winning the season series. The higher seed plays at home throughout every best-of-three Wild Card Series.
New York went 45-39 in the 84 games Judge missed, but the offense struggled without him. The Yankees batted .243 with 86 homers in 59 games through May 31, but hit only .227 with 107 homers in 84 games while he was out. Their batting average during that stretch ranked 29th among the 30 major league teams, ahead of only Seattle. New York had a .770 OPS through May 31, but that fell to .681 in his absence.
Judge, who missed time in 2023 with a fractured right big toe and in 2022 with a flexor strain, won a batting title last season when he hit a career-high .331 with 53 homers and 114 RBIs in 152 games, winning his third MVP.