Aaron Judge's Latest Injury Scare Doesn't Bode Well for Yankees

The New York Yankees are dealing with another Aaron Judge scare, and it's fair to be worried about this one.

New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge left Wednesday's game with right lower leg tightness. The club hopes that's all it is, as they can't afford to have him out again. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Aaron Judge leaving a game the New York Yankees needed to win is a concern. Aaron Boone may have just said it was something to monitor, but any length of time without him could have clear postseason implications.

The Yankees could be getting ahead of something, but considering the stakes and New York being within striking distance of the Tampa Bay Rays, Judge leaving so suddenly should raise some red flags about his health. Plus, it wouldn't be the first time the organization underplayed a situation to later reveal the player is more hurt than they initially let on.

If Judge returns by the weekend, the Yankees will have avoided a catastrophe. Things get tricky, though, if he's out for the rest of the season, or if he's out for a bit and then returns just in time for the playoffs.

The Yankees have faced this situation before. This happened to Edwin Encarnacion and Gary Sanchez in 2019. It happened again to Matt Carpenter in 2021.

In 2019, Encarnacion went 5-for-21, having just one hit in the ALCS, and Sanchez went 4-for-31. Carpenter was even worse. He returned in the ALCS and struck out nine times in 12 at-bats.

The Yankees can't afford to be without Judge again

Judge returning at any point is better than him being on the shelf, but without any rehab games, it's fair to wonder what he could even do — especially off postseason pitching. Sure he'll be fresher than he was in previous years, but at that point, knocking off the rust is an issue, too.

Outside of the one homer this week, he has already struggled to hit against the Colorado Rockies and Minnesota Twins starters. The Yankees aren't seeing Tomoyuki Sugano and Ryan Feltner in the postseason.

Plus, it's no secret that the Yankees with Judge and without him are a completely different team. Without their captain, the Yankees were one of the worst offenses in the sport. While he was out, their .228 batting average was the second-worst in all of baseball. Only the Seattle Mariners were worse during that span. Their .682 OPS was the fourth-worst, and their 90 wRC+ was the third-worst.

In many ways, it was reminiscent of the offense in 2023, when Judge crashed into the wall at Dodger Stadium. Their only saving grace was their rotation and bullpen. If Judge is out, pitching will have to carry them again.

It's hard to say how the Yankees would scrape together a few runs when that was already hard enough with him. They certainly made Zebby Matthews look like an ace on Wednesday, and Judge was there for the majority of his start.

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