Yankees Put Aaron Judge on 10-Day IL as Calf Strain Clouds Postseason Role
Updated
Updated · Yahoo Sports · Sep 19
Yankees Put Aaron Judge on 10-Day IL as Calf Strain Clouds Postseason Role
3 articles · Updated · Yahoo Sports · Sep 19
Summary
Aaron Judge will be ineligible to return until the Yankees' final regular-season game, leaving his postseason readiness uncertain even after the club's 10-day IL move.
A healthy-enough Judge could still hit as a designated hitter, but that would force a defensive reshuffle across the Yankees' lineup.
Ben Rice would likely move to first base in that scenario, while Luis Garcia Jr. — batting .285 with 7 homers for New York — could shift to second.
That would leave Aaron Boone balancing Jazz Chisholm Jr., Anthony Volpe and Ryan McMahon around the infield, with Chisholm also on the injured list and Volpe hitting .348 since his August recall.
Judge, 34, had only recently returned from a rib stress fracture that limited him to 66 games, making his calf strain another late-season setback for a Yankees team already in the playoffs.