Aaron Judge’s long-awaited imaging results weren’t exactly the best, but also not the worst.
As the Yankees entered the second half of the season, they had to carry on without the back-to-back AL MVP.
Judge had tests on his right rib stress fracture last Wednesday. The results showed some healing, but not enough for him to return to the game just yet.
He and the team are now waiting on feedback from a rib specialist to see if he can get the green light to at least start some upper-body training. It’s been six weeks since he was diagnosed, and he hasn’t been able to do any of that.
“It’s definitely a positive sign that there are signs of healing,” Judge mentioned. “Part of it is healing, but the other part is still trying to build that bridge. I think we’re just trying to wait it out and see if we can get some confirmation of what we can start doing.”
General manager Brian Cashman pointed out last week that the Yankees don’t anticipate Judge’s ribs fully healing just yet.
They’re cautious about rushing him back. If he were to have a setback, it could jeopardize his chances of playing for the rest of the season.
For now, Judge feels “absolutely” confident about returning to the field this year.
“I don’t see why you wouldn’t do that,” he added.
The Yankees are still awaiting an update from Dr. Gregory Pearl, the specialist who first diagnosed Judge, to figure out what activities he can undertake over the next few days and when further imaging tests might occur.
Since early June, Judge has limited his exercise to just lower body workouts, like walking on a treadmill.
The timeline for his return remains uncertain, but late August seems to be the earliest possibility.
Judge expressed, “I feel better. It’s been a tough couple of weeks, and we couldn’t really do anything, but now I feel 10 times better. My big complaint was: ‘Once you feel better, why don’t you just start moving?’ But I think they just don’t want to jump into baseball activities and risk setting everything back.”
