Captain Aaron Judge exited the New York Yankees‘ game against the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday with right-leg tightness.
Outfielder Heliot Ramos pinch hit for Judge during his spot in the sixth inning. Judge was 0-for-2 with a pair of strikeouts.
The Yankees did not initially provide any update the injury, leaving fans to speculate the worst for nearly an hour before YES’ Meredith Markaovits reported the leg prognosis.
Judge missed 84 games with a stress fracture in his right rib, and the Yankees were one of the worst offensive teams in baseball in that span.
Judge returned Sept. 8 against the Colorado Rockies — he left that game early too — and hit his first home run since coming back from the injury in the Yankees’ 8-3 win over the Twins that clinched a playoff berth Monday.
The Yankees captain got the day off Tuesday, and the Yankees are off Thursday before their three-game weekend series against the Arizona Diamondbacks.
Judge is slashing .241/.360/.511 with 18 home runs and 41 RBIs through 66 games.
Aaron Judge Left Wednesday’s Yankees Game in the Sixth Inning
YES Network cameras captured Judge appearing to grimace during a check swing in his final at-bat. He remained in the game, struck out again in the third inning to strand two runners then fielded Ben Ross’ double off the wall in the fifth inning.
But all of Yankees Universe held its breath when Ramos stepped up to the plate in Judge’s spot for the sixth inning, especially after YES Network analyst and Judge’s former manager, Joe Girardi, said what Yankees fans were thinking.
“Something has to be up,” Girardi said.
Ramos, whom the Yankees acquired from the San Francisco Giants before the trade deadline as insurance for Judge, struck out in his at-bat. He took over in right field in the bottom of the sixth inning.
The Yankees Can’t Afford to Lose Aaron Judge
The Yankees were being shut out when Judge exited the game Wednesday, held in check by Twins starter Zebby Matthews.
But you can feel the sigh of relief from Yankees fans after Marakovits’ reporting.
The Yankees offense was again beginning to find its footing with Judge back. They ranked tied for 26th in the majors in runs, 26th in slugging percentage (.386) and dead last in on-base percentage (.295) over the three-plus months Judge was out of the lineup.
Judge’s postseason struggles are well-documented, but the Yankees really can’t afford not to have him in their lineup when the calendar flips to October with any injury.
Aside from being a three-time American League MVP, Judge also balances out the Yankees’ left-hand-heavy lineup, joining infielders Anthony Volpe and George Lombard Jr. as the only righties in their regular starting nine.
A second straight wild-card-round date with the Boston Red Sox, and their co-ace lefties Garrett Crochet and Payton Tolle, is looming. The Yankees are already likely to be without Giancarlo Stanton and not having Judge would be even more problematic.
Yankees Fans Breathe Sigh of Relief After Aaron Judge Injury Scare