NEW YORK — Yankees captain Aaron Judge is dealing with a flexor strain in his right elbow, leading to a stint on the 10-day injured list, as announced by manager Aaron Boone after Saturday’s 9-4 loss to the Phillies at Yankee Stadium. Boone confirmed that Judge’s UCL remains intact and he is expected to return as the Yankees’ designated hitter once off the IL.
“No acute injury to the UCL. Overall, that’s good news,” Boone stated. “With those first few days coming off the IL, it’s probably DH mode. Then he’ll start throwing … and, hopefully, get back to the outfield shortly thereafter.”
The injury occurred during Tuesday’s game against the Blue Jays when Judge attempted to throw out Davis Schneider at home plate. Despite experiencing pain, Judge continued playing through subsequent games against Toronto and Philadelphia.
“It was kind of do or die,” Judge remarked about Tuesday’s play. “Keep the one-run lead or it’s a tie game in Toronto. You have to make a play. I felt the pain there. You have to gut it out. It’s a big game. It’s our division rival.”
Judge had hoped Thursday’s off-day would alleviate his discomfort but struggled with throwing during Friday’s game against the Phillies.
“I wasn’t able to throw the last couple of days. I wanted to take the off-day and see how it went,” Judge explained. “I was pretty adamant about playing [Friday]. It just came down to a point where if I need to make a play for the team, I’m going to do it.”
Despite being able to bat without issues, Judge was reluctant about going on the IL but acknowledged that throwing remained problematic.
“Throwing is the main concern. … I’ve been hitting with it during the last couple of days,” said Judge.
Upon returning from injury, Giancarlo Stanton is anticipated to fill in corner outfield positions despite not having played there since 2023 due to previous injuries.
“Whatever is going to put us in the best opportunity to win for all circumstances,” Stanton noted regarding his potential role change.
Following Saturday’s defeat, New York trails 6 1/2 games behind Toronto in their division but leads in AL Wild Card standings.
Judge expressed confidence in his teammates stepping up during his absence: “Guys are going to step up.”
He also mentioned an important acquisition ahead of Trade Deadline: “[Ryan] McMahon…is going to help us win a lot of games.”
Judge currently boasts impressive statistics this season with .342/.449/.711 slash line including 37 homers over 103 games following an MVP award-winning year last season (2024).
