New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge has received a brutal prediction before the Division Series.
New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge was left off of the Wild Card Series roster due to a calf strain he suffered on Sept. 16.
Judge tried to convince the Yankees to place him on the roster, but Aaron Boone decided it was best to continue allowing Judge to rest.
Now, the same question faces New York heading into the Division Series against the Tampa Bay Rays, but it's more pressing.
Judge is just over two weeks removed from the injury, which was deemed a moderate strain in his soleus muscle ... the muscle connected to the Achilles tendon. The Yankees are understandably being cautious, and typically, moderate calf strains could take up to two months to fully heal, anyway.
While Judge has taken live batting practice, he is yet to run the bases, a telltale sign that he isn't quite ready to return.
The problem? The Division Series is a best-of-5 rather than a best-of-3, so there have been some who have wondered if New York could place Judge on the ALDS roster, sit him for the first couple of games and then bring him back later on in the series if necessary.
Brendan Kuty of The Athletic doesn't even think it will get that far.
In a Friday piece where Kuty predicted the Yankees' 26-man roster for their series versus the Rays, he omitted Judge.
At this point, it's looking less and less likely that Judge will actually be able to participate in any capacity in this series, which begins Saturday evening.
It's clear that Judge isn't close to 100 percent yet, and even if he may feel good, the risk of re-aggravation — or a more serious injury — are obviously there.
Not only that, but if Judge were to return, he would likely be installed in a DH role, which would remove Luis Garcia Jr. from the lineup. Ben Rice would move to first base on a full-time basis in that scenario, and Garcia would become a bench bat.
While the Yankees have been platooning Garcia with Paul Goldschmidt depending on the handedness of the opposing starting pitcher, they surely would not like to have Garcia in a reserve role altogether.
Putting Judge in right field would likely result in disaster. You would then significantly increase the chances of re-injury, and it's hard to imagine that the three-time MVP would be even close to his usual self defensively.
As crazy as it might sound, New York might actually be better off leaving Judge off of the ALDS roster.
