The New York Yankees secured a 9-2 victory in their series opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday night.
However, the biggest storyline came before the game even started, as superstar Aaron Judge was placed on the 10-day IL with a calf strain. This comes just over a week after he returned from the 60-day IL following the rib injury that had sidelined him since late May.
Judge left Wednesday’s game against the Minnesota Twins in the sixth inning after seemingly tweaking his calf early in the game. He attempted to play through it before deciding that it would be smarter for both himself and the team to step aside and leave the game.
Joe Girardi Makes Honest Statement on Judge Injury
Not long after the injury surfaced for Judge, former Yankees manager and current YES Network color commentator Joe Girardi shared his thoughts on the report surrounding the team’s star player and his level of concern moving forward.
“Well there’s a huge level of concern,” Girardi said. “Because they were talking about putting him on the IL and he won’t have a chance to play in anymore games this season. And he was not to me, ready too go from a timing standpoint and how do you get your timing you gotta play games. So it’s a pretty big concern to me.
“They have not announced the level of strain and how long he’s gonna be out. But here’s the thing, the Yankees without him have had the third best record in the American League all year long. And if they continue to do that they’re gonna have a chance. They’re healthier on the pitching side and they’re going to have to win games that way again.”
Joe Girardi shares his level of concern surrounding Aaron Judge being placed on the 10-day IL with @NancyNewmanYES. pic.twitter.com/FOkKv6GNBo
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) September 19, 2026
Looking at the Yankees
While New York has seen a dip in offensive production with Judge sidelined, and rightfully so, he’s not only the team’s best hitter but also one of the best hitters in all of MLB. They’ve still remained one of the top AL teams, as Girardi mentioned.
They currently hold an 89-64 overall record entering Saturday, and they’re firmly in the top Wild Card spot, which would allow them to host a best-of-three series in the first round.
That said, they’re still just 4.0 games back of the Tampa Bay Rays for first place in the AL East. If they can somehow close that gap and overtake Tampa Bay, they’d be in line to earn the No. 1 overall seed and a first-round bye.
Joe Girardi Makes Honest Aaron Judge Statement After Brutal Injury News