New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone still isn’t sure when Aaron Judge will be able to return to the outfield.
Judge injured his arm on July 22 while throwing a ball in from the outfield during a game against the Toronto Blue Jays. The slugger had to hit the IL, and since then, he has been just a DH.
Given that it’s been over a month since the injury, Boone was asked when Judge will return to the field. However, after the Yankees‘ blowout win over the Washington Nationals on August 27, Boone said there is still no update on when he will return to the field.
“Boone also said he still doesn’t have a target date for Judge’s in-game return to the outfield,” Gary Phillips of New York Daily News wrote.
For now, Judge remains a full-time DH, but the Yankees will need his bat to get better. Judge hit a homer on August 27 as he has been struggling at the plate, but Boone isn’t worried.
Instead, Boone says Judge’s struggles were due to timing and not the nagging injury. But that doesn’t rule out the manager giving Judge an off-day in the near future.
“That’s probably been a tick off,” Boone said. “But that’s constantly something as hitters that you’re kind of working through. We know with Aaron that that’s a matter of time.”
Judge is hitting .323 with 41 home runs and 95 RBIs this season.
Judge Throws to Bases
Although Boone isn’t sure when Judge will return to the field, he is starting to throw to the bases.
Judge threw to bases at Yankee Stadium for the first time since the injury on August 24. It was a major step in the right direction for the Yankees‘ slugger.
However, despite Judge starting to throw to the bases, Boone says he isn’t any closer to returning to the outfield.
With Judge now being the DH, Giancarlo Stanton has started to play in the outfield.
Judge & Yankees Get Hot Against Nationals
New York’s bats got hot on August 27 as the Yankees cruised to an 11-2 win over the Nationals.
The win included the Yankees‘ batting for 41 minutes and scoring 9 runs in the third inning, as New York sent 15 batters to the plate. The inning included Judge and Cody Bellinger hitting back-to-back home runs.
“It’s just everybody clicking, everybody having good at-bats, not trying to do too much,” Judge said. “Guys just had good at-bat after good at-bat. Bellinger hits the big homer after me, and everybody’s trying to pass the baton.”
Judge, meanwhile, says the Yankees‘ offense did what it needed to do, as everyone did their job.
“I know we scored a lot of runs that inning, but you could tell from each guy up in the box, the guys on deck, even if you took a peek in the dugout, guys were locked in there on the top step,” Judge said. “That really helped us not think about how many runs we scored or what just happened. It was like, ‘Hey, you got a job to do up there. It doesn’t matter how many outs, who’s on base, what the score is, you’ve got to go up there and do a job.’ It’s what makes this team special.”
The Yankees are now 73-60 and tied for second in the AL East.
Yankees Manager Gives Bleak Update on Judge’s Return to Outfield