In the middle of one of the greatest offensive seasons in MLB History, Aaron Judge was out of the New York Yankees starting lineup for only the second time this season on Saturday afternoon, but the game against the visiting Philadelphia Phillies would also mark the first time that Judge has missed an entire game.
According to a report by The Athletic, “Judge didnât appear in the Yankeesâ clubhouse during the 50-minute window in which reporters were allowed access Saturday morning. At one point, a clubhouse attendant appeared to fetch Judgeâs clothes from his locker for him.”
Tommy John Surgery May be On Table
The the two-time MVP underwent tests on a sore right elbow Saturday morning. While results were not announced as of mid-afternoon Saturday, Manager Aaron Boone declined to rule out the possibility that the superstar, who is leading the Major Leagues in batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage (.342/.449/.711) may require season-ending surgery.
“When asked Saturday if Judge could be dealing with an ulnar collateral ligament injury, which could require Tommy John surgery, Boone said he didn’t know,” reported ESPN.com baseball writer Jorge Castillo.
“Felt like we wanted to have him down and get the imaging, get our hands around just what exactly we’re dealing with,” Boone said in response to the Tommy John question, as quoted by Castillo.
Judge Played With Painful Elbow Since Tuesday
Boone also said that he was “obviously concerned,” adding “weâll wait and see, read the imaging and hopefully have more later today,â according to comments reported by MLB.com.
Judge first felt the injury making a throw from the outfield in Tuesday’s game in Toronto against the Blue Jays, according to the MLB.com report.
The 6-foot-7, 282-pound slugger remained in that game, which the Yankees won 5-4 on a ninth-inning solo home run by Ben Rice. But Judge went 0-3 with a walk and a strikeout.
Judge continued to play in the following two games, homering on Wednesday in the series finale in Toronto. But that was his only hit in seven at-bats and the Yankees lost both games.
Yankees Still Clinging to Wild Card Lead
The Yankees had fallen to 5 1/2 games behind the Blue Jays prior to Saturday’s game, after leading the AL East by seven games as late as May 28. New York has now lost seven of its last 10 games, making the possibility of an extended period without Judge especially alarming.
The Yankees continued to hold a narrow lead in the AL Wild Card race, 1 1/2 games ahead of the Seattle Mariners and two games clear of the Boston Red Sox, who occupied the third and final Wild Card berth entering Saturday’s action.
The potentially catastrophic injury to Judge comes as the Yankees are struggling to not merely to win games, but simply to play fundamentals sound baseball. In Friday’s loss to the Phillies the Bronx Bombers committed two more errors, after making four in the previous game in Toronto, one in Tuesday’s game and another two on Monday.
‘Slow Humiliating Collapse’ of Yankees, Analyst Says
“Letâs stop pretending. This isnât a slump. Itâs not a ‘rough patch.’ What weâre watching is the slow, humiliating collapse of the New York Yankees â errors, lifeless losses, and now, one elbow at a time,” wrote Bleeding Yankee Blue founder Robert Casey on Saturday morning.
“Aaron Judge â the only thing separating this team from complete irrelevance â is now dealing with what manager Aaron Boone ominously called an ‘elbow issue,’” Casey concluded. “The vibes are bad. Really bad.”
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