Aaron Judge is considered day to day after imaging revealed a bone bruise in his right rib cage, the New York Yankees announced on June 3. Judge underwent testing following discomfort in his right shoulder and upper rib area that affected his swings during the team’s recent series in West Sacramento.
Manager Aaron Boone said after the Yankees’ 9-4 loss to the Guardians that Judge will see a specialist for an additional opinion. “It’s kind of a unique spot,” Boone said. “We’ll have the specialist probably look at it tomorrow and see where we’re at and see how he feels [Wednesday] with it.”
The team stated that while initial results pointed to a bone bruise, Judge mostly feels pain in his right shoulder when swinging. He had been in the starting lineup for every game so far this season but instead visited team physician Dr. Chris Ahmad on Tuesday.
Boone said the Yankees are not ruling out placing Judge on the injured list, but confirmed he is currently listed as day to day. Cody Bellinger commented, “Obviously, it’s a huge loss in the lineup. We’ve all got to pick it up around him.” Paul Goldschmidt added, “We’d love to have him in the lineup for this team; he’s the captain for a reason. But if he does end up missing time, whether it’s short or long, the guys that are here are going to have to step up and play well.”
Boone noted that Judge has managed soreness in his right shoulder for several weeks but noticed increased discomfort during games against Oakland. Since May 11, Judge has batted .206 with one home run and eight RBIs over 68 at-bats.
José Caballero started in right field Tuesday as Judge sat out. At age 34, Judge has won three of the last four American League Most Valuable Player Awards (2022, ’24, ’25) and is hitting .248 with 17 home runs and 38 RBIs through 59 games this season.
