Yankees manager Aaron Boone just told the press that outfielder Aaron Judge will be activated before tonight’s game.
Judge will not be used as a hitter yet, but could be used on defense or running bases. Boone didn’t specify when Judge will be ready to hit in a game and that the club is still a couple of days away from making that decision. They are activating him now, though, in order to get him at least some in-game action in preparation for his full return. Boone said Judge will hit in simulated games first and implied that Judge could be a week away from being a full-time player again.
Judge has been out since late July due to a fractured wrist suffered when he was hit by a fastball from Royals pitcher Jakob Junis. He has taken longer than expected to recover from the injury and the Yankees have felt his absence. They’ve played well compared to most everyone else, but have played poorly compared to the torrid pace they were setting before Judge’s injury and, in the meantime, have all but lost any chance they had at catching the the Red Sox in the AL East.
Judge was hitting .285/.398/.548 with 26 home runs and 61 RBI in 447 plate appearances when he went down. He’s back now, even if we have to wait a few more days for his bat to join him.