Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, who missed the last 10 games of the regular season, took batting practice on Monday and hopes to play Tuesday when New York opens the playoffs.
Ahead of the Yankees’ American League wild-card Game 1 against the visiting Boston Red Sox, Judge walked twice, grounded out and struck out in his BP plate appearances on the field. He also took swings in the indoor batting cage and practiced throwing.
As to whether the Yankees will put him on the wild-card roster and potentially in the lineup, Judge said, “I’ve been doing a lot of convincing. I feel like I’m going to keep doing that. But I think the most important thing is just making sure I’m healthy and ready to go for this long stretch.
“We got another month of baseball to play so I want to be ready for the long run we’re going to go on here for this next month. We’re all going to be smart, but I think they all know I want to be out there, especially that first game.”
Yankees manager Aaron Boone remained non-committal regarding Judge’s status.
“He’s making progress,” Boone said. “We’ll continue to see where he’s at.”
Judge hopes to return to his regular position in right field instead of being relegated to duty as a designated hitter or a reserve.
Regarding concerns over potentially coming back too quickly and getting re-injured, Judge said, “Guys take risks every single day. I know a lot of guys in here are banged up and dealing with stuff. So yeah, I understand the risks. I’ve got it all.”
Judge missed just over half of the regular season because of a right rib fracture. He returned to action on Sept. 8 and was largely ineffective in the seven games before sustaining the calf injury, batting .174 (4-for-23) with a three-run homer but no other long balls or RBIs in seven games.
In 66 games overall this year, Judge batted .241 with a .360 on-base percentage, a .511 slugging percentage, 18 homers and 41 RBIs.
