David Lennon: Jury is still out on Aaron Judge, but a verdict will come Tuesday
The Yankees' Aaron Judge takes batting practice during their American League Wild Card Series workout day at Yankee Stadium on Monday. Credit: Newsday/Thomas A. Ferrara
One overlooked part of Monday’s “will-he-or-won’t-he” debate involving Aaron Judge’s sketchy availability for the Wild Card Series was the captain forecasting the Yankees’ second World Series trip in three years.
“We got another month of baseball to play,” Judge said before Monday’s workout in the Bronx. “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 in the first game.”
OK, so maybe Judge’s October prognosis wasn’t quite on the same level as the guarantees issued by Namath, Ewing and Messier. But it does speak to where his mind was on the eve of his ninth playoff trip during a decade wearing pinstripes (and yes, the Yankees will wait until Tuesday to reveal the verdict on Judge’s wild-card status).
Judge knows the score. He’s 0-for-9 when it comes to World Series titles, an uncomfortably long stretch for a Yankee destined to have his No. 99 posted in Monument Park. Don Mattingly is the only other captain of the past century who left the Bronx without a championship ring. But the beloved Donnie Baseball got only one shot in 1995, when the Yankees were the American League’s first-ever wild-card team (and suffered a heartbreaking first-round loss to the Mariners).
During Judge’s tenure, the Yankees have shown up in October nearly as much as Halloween. But he’s also 34, an age at which a player at least becomes more aware of his mortality. So this doesn’t feel solely about figuring out the viability of playing with a calf strain that may or may not be “moderate,” depending on whom you ask.
For Judge, it’s about doing everything he can, however limited he might be, to help ensure that the Yankees get back to the World Series and win it this time. There’s nothing more painful to a three-time MVP than sitting on the bench, and Judge refuses to do so willingly unless he’s physically unable to walk to the batter’s box.
“I think the biggest thing is just understanding the time I get to be a Yankee and play this game of baseball is a very short window,” Judge said. “Ten years have gone by since I’ve debuted out there, so time flies. I just think about that more than thinking about age. I feel like I’ll still be a good baseball player at 45. Your window to play this game is short, so you don’t want to miss an opportunity.”
In some cases, however, you don’t have a choice, and that’s where Judge stands with this calf strain, a stubborn injury that can cause bigger problems (such as an Achilles tendon tear) if pushed too hard.
He’s been walking that tightrope recently, and on Monday, he graduated to a simulated game against Elmer Rodriguez and Ryan Weathers. It was a rather uneventful session, with Judge mostly tracking pitches, so we’re not sure how much that was supposed to help from an evaluation standpoint.
“He’s making progress,” Aaron Boone said Monday afternoon. “We’ll continue to see where he’s at.”
Otherwise, Judge didn’t do much on the field Monday beyond batting practice. No shagging fly balls in right or running the bases, which casts serious doubt on his being added to the roster for this first round.
Even Giancarlo Stanton, who also took part in the simulated game, spent some time sprinting in the outfield, an indication that his calf issues finally are behind him and he’s a go for the Wild Card Series.
As for Judge, he denied trying to force the Yankees’ hand.
“I’m a part of zero plans,” Judge said. “They make the decisions. They kind of run this. I voice my opinion, but that might be 1% of what goes into the final say.”
You’d have to think the Yankees would make room for Judge if they believed he could be a serviceable player. But what does that mean? If playing rightfield is out of the question, can they use him as a DH who is able to run at only half-speed? (That would mean not playing Ben Rice or Luis Garcia Jr.) Or does it make sense to put him on as another righthanded pinch hitter to go along with Stanton on the bench? Because the Yankees will require only three starters for this round and probably will take only 10 pitchers, that would give them more flexibility among the 16-player position group.
Is a limited Judge worth the spot? He played a total of seven games between returning from a 3 1/2-month absence with a rib stress fracture and going right back on the injured list with the calf strain. Factor in the risk of doing more damage to himself, and it’s hard to rationalize Judge returning by Tuesday.
Knowing that, I asked Judge if resting this week would help him get in better shape for the later rounds, which he apparently already has penciled in for the Yankees.
“That’s a great question,” he said. “But I haven’t really thought about that.”
Come Tuesday, we’ll finally have an answer regarding Judge. As far as what he’ll be able to contribute this October, however, the jury is out.
It’s a big jump from minimal baseball activity to performing like a three-time MVP again, and that version of Judge could be a while away. But if the Yankees are headed to the World Series, as he believes, there still should be plenty of time for that Judge to return.
David Lennon is an award-winning columnist, a voter for baseball's Hall of Fame and has covered six no-hitters, including two perfect games.
