Latest Injury Update on Aaron Judge as He Nears Return

The New York Yankees are getting much closer to the return of an important player. Aaron Judge is far along in his recovery from a fractured right rib.

According to the New York Post, Judge took batting practice multiple days in a row as the Yankees continued a series against the Padres. He has shown that he is physically ready for a return, but he continues to focus on the endurance portion of the process.

“He’s physically to the finish line, where he needs to be, but it’s about just doing it a lot, because that’s ultimately what you’re trying to replicate is being out there for nine innings where you’re playing for three hours and sit down, get up, those kind of things,” manager Aaron Boone said on Saturday.

“Just replicating that. So we’re getting to that point with the volume. He ran bases again today. He’s in a good spot.”

Shortly after closing out the series against the Padres, the Yankees announced that Judge would take another step in the recovery process. He will have his first live pitching session on Monday as the team prepares for a series against the Rockies.

This will mark the first time that he has faced live pitching since late May when he fractured his rib, and it will set up a potential return against the Rockies on Tuesday or Wednesday.

Although Judge isn’t trying to dictate when he gets back into the lineup. He said he would leave it up to Boone to make that decision.

Another possibility exists that Judge could go to the Minor Leagues for a rehab assignment, something that is common in the sport. Though he is pushing against that option. He said that he didn’t see the point.

If the Yankees skip the rehab assignment, they could just insert Judge into some upcoming games for limited actions. He could play five or six innings for the Yankees while building up his endurance.

The missed time due to the injury will knock Judge out of contention for some various achievements. He will not be the batting leader after only playing in 59 regular-season games thus far.

Additionally, Judge will fall short of the 40-home run milestone that has become a popular storyline on Polymarket. Traders have spent time trying to predict which sluggers would hit this number and even go beyond.

Judge currently has a 2% chance to his 40 or more home runs. This is understandable considering that he only hit 17 before heading to the Injured List.

If healthy, he would have been a popular commodity in this market, considering that he has hit 53 or more home runs in three seasons going back to 2022. He led Major League Baseball with 58 home runs in 2024 and 62 home runs in 2022.

The current popular names on the 40-plus list include Yordan Alvarez at 86%, Matt Olson at 82%, Junior Caminero at 81%, and Colson Montgomery at 8%.

Alvarez and Caminero both need two home runs to hit this milestone. Montgomery needs nine more home runs. Olson needs three home runs.

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