Just when Yankees fans were starting to dream of a second-half surge, reality delivered a frustrating update on their captain's status. Aaron Judge, sidelined since late May with a stress fracture in his rib, is still not ready to swing a bat—and no one can say when he will be.
The eight-time All-Star underwent imaging this week that showed some healing, but according to manager Aaron Boone, it's not enough to let Judge start any baseball activities. “There’s healing going on, which is good, but he’s still not able to start any baseball activities or anything,” Boone told reporters. “He needs to get to a point where he’s asymptomatic, where you really start ramping up more upper-body stuff. The good news is, the pain is subsiding somewhat over the last couple weeks and changing from that sharp [pain] to more dull.”
That's cold comfort for a team fighting to hold off the Red Sox and Orioles in the AL East. Judge was hitting .248 with 17 homers and 38 RBIs before the injury, and his absence has been felt in nearly every facet of New York's lineup. The Yankees have been treading water without their MVP, but they've also lost seven straight games recently, prompting fans to call for major changes.
For now, the organization is taking a cautious approach. Dr. Gregory Pearl, a Texas-based specialist, reviewed the latest scans and agreed that while the rib is healing, Judge is still not cleared to ramp up. “We’ll just continue to wait and let it heal,” Boone added. “I feel good about the fact that he’ll be back, but it’s just a matter of when. Obviously, we all want Aaron Judge back in the lineup.”
Judge himself remains optimistic—perhaps more than anyone else. Speaking Friday, he described the pain as “10 times better” than it was a few weeks ago. “There’s some progress, some healing going on, but it’s not fully healed,” Judge said. “We’re still waiting on one more doctor to take a look at it and see how we progress forward the next couple of weeks, but it’s definitely a positive sign that we’re seeing some healing.”
When asked if he expects to play again this season, Judge didn’t hesitate. “Definitely,” he said. “I don’t see why I wouldn’t.” That confidence is understandable given his track record—three MVPs in the last handful of years—but it doesn't change the medical reality. The Yankees need the best version of Judge, and that means waiting until he's fully healed, not just pain-free.
The situation has also sparked debate about whether Judge's continued All-Star status, even while injured, is good for the game. Some have questioned if the honor should go to a player who can't actually play, but for now, the focus remains on recovery. The Yankees are clinging to hope that Judge returns before the season slips away, but with each passing week, that hope gets a little harder to hold onto.
