Aaron Judge won’t get much rest during the All-Star break, but manager Aaron Boone is giving him midseason rest.
Boone said Friday that Judge will play “a lot” as the designated hitter while Giancarlo Stanton is out with a hamstring injury, and he plans to use the stretch to conserve the slugger’s body to continue to intimidate opposing pitchers.
“It’s an opportunity to give him a little bit of a physical hit in the middle of the season,” Boone said Friday before hosting the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium.
Judge has started as a DH 13 times in the first 84 games of the season and Friday’s game marked his fifth time starting as a DH in the past six games.
He started 62 games in center field and served as the designated hitter once or twice a week when Stanton was healthy.
But the Yankees likely plan to use Judge more at designated hitter position and give Trent Grisham more playing time in center field until Stanton returns later this month.
“With Stanton out, I think taking a chance without me in center field is the best lineup, and I think that’s going to be the best lineup, honestly,” Judge said. “If you’re going to have a Gold Glove winner in center field, that’s the only way you’re going to do it, so I’m OK with that.”
The Yankees moved Judge to center field this year to accommodate the additions of Juan Soto and Alex Verdugo, raising concerns about how the 6-foot-7, 282-pound player would physically handle the expanded defensive range.
But Judge, who prefers to play center field, has responded with another dominant offensive performance, batting .314 with a league-leading 32 home runs and a 1.135 OPS as of Friday.
Boone said he had spoken with Grisham about his blunder in center field on Thursday when he was careless on a ground ball that led to an error and allowed Jeimer Candelario to hit for an extra base.
“You understand, especially when you go through something like this, it’s not going to look good,” Boone said, “but at the same time, one of the reasons he was a Gold Glove center fielder is because of the way he beats, the way he makes reads, the way he jumps, the ease with which he plays the position. You don’t want to lose that. But at the same time, you’ve got to pay attention to some of the day-to-day things.”
The Yankees have never been a team that excels at getting on the bases, but they entered Friday’s game without a stolen base in their past 17 games and were hitless in four at-bats during that stretch.
“We’ve been down by two, three, four points the last couple weeks, and for a team like us, it’s not really favorable to use certain guys,” Boone said. “We’re going to look for spots, but we don’t want to be out there having to make runs when the matchup or personnel isn’t right.”
Through Friday, the Yankees had stolen 37 bases this year, second-fewest in the major leagues.
Jon Berti (strained calf strain) took batting practice and hit grounders at third base before Friday’s game and is scheduled to begin a rehab assignment immediately after the All-Star break.
“As production ramps up, things are looking up,” said Berti, who estimates the plant is about 75 percent operational. “We’re excited to see more growth.”
