The New York Yankees have lost their captain, and best player, to the injured list and they are lost without him. Aaron Judge went down with an injury officially landing on the injured list on June 6th, but he has not played a game since running into the wall at Dodgers Stadium on June 3rd. Manager Aaron Boone was asked about Judge's timeline last week and said he was as curious as anyone as to when his star might re-enter the lineup.
The Yankees desperately need Judge's impact. The Bombers have been anything but since he landed on the IL. New York has not won a series since then and are averaging just about 3 runs per game. Judge missed time earlier in the year as well and the Yankees now are under .500 when his big bat is not in the lineup. That lineup is looking for someone to step up and his absence only highlights the offensive struggles that New York fans have learned to expect in October.
Entering the weekend Judge's supporting cast has not been able to produce nearly anything without the slugger. Anthony Rizzo is batting under .100 without Judge. Rizzo started the year off red hot and has since hit a wall at a time when the Yankees needed his production badly. Both Stanton and Donaldson are in the same boat with under .100 batting average. They are coming back from injuries themselves but enough time has passed where it's fair to expect more production. DJ and Torres aren't doing much better with each flirting with a .200 batting average.
The Yankees were hoping to stay afloat during Judge's absence but they are in danger if one of their high priced batters can't get it going. With the trade deadline a little more than a month away getting an impact bat should be priority #1 on Cashman's list. Judge can't do this alone and he seemingly has been for two seasons.
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| Aaron Judge File Photo |