NEW YORK (AP) — New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge is out of the starting lineup for Tuesday’s game against Cleveland because of a bone bruise in his upper right rib that he feels in his right shoulder, and he might miss a few days.
“He’s been kind of the last couple of weeks kind of dealing with some shoulder soreness, just kind of more nagging,” manager Aaron Boone said before the series opener against the Guardians. “Then over the weekend, the last couple of games in Sacramento, I think it became a little more than just that, where I noticed with some swings and stuff. It became a little more than just nagging. I think it was affecting him.”
Boone said tests on the team’s off day on Monday revealed the bruise. Judge met with team physician later Dr. Christopher Ahmad Tuesday and following Tuesday’s 9-4 loss, Boone said Judge will see a specialist on Wednesday.
Judge had an rib injury in March 2020 when doctors discovered a stress fracture in his right rib. The injury occurred when he dove for a ball in September 2019, but Judge did not miss any time because of the injury because the 2020 season was delayed due to the pandemic.
“Tough to say,” Boone said. “We’ll look at it and that’s why we want a specialist to look at it too and just try and rule out anything or see if there’s something else to see.”
In March 2020, doctors discovered a stress fracture in his right rib, stemming from a dive he made in a game the prior September. He was shut down for two weeks, but the season was delayed until July due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Judge is hitting .248 and 17 homers and 38 RBIs. The three-time AL MVP has one homer in his last 18 games since May 10 and ended an 11-game homer and RBI drought with a game-ending, two-run drive in the ninth inning to give the Yankees a 2-0 win over Tampa Bay on May 24.
Judge entered the game against Tampa Bay in a 1-for-24 slump that dropped his batting average to .246. He was hitless in 15 at-bats before singling in the first inning.
“I think probably something that’s been affecting him a little bit here recently, especially this weekend,” Boone said. “So, hopefully, it is something that we just get calmed down here and put it behind us.”
Judge won the batting title last season when he batted a career-high .331 with 53 homers and 114 RBIs in 152 games. He missed 10 games from July 26-Aug. 4 with a flexor strain in his right elbow sustained on a throw to home July 22 in Toronto. He underwent a plasma-rich injection and did not require offseason surgery, though he did not return to the outfield until Sept. 5.
When Judge was hurt last season, Giancarlo Stanton played 17 games in the outfield. Stanton has been out since April 24 with a strained right calf.
On Tuesday, José Caballero made his 22nd career start in right field and third since being acquired from Tampa Bay at the July 31 trade deadline.
Judge had started 52 of New York’s first 59 games in right field. Rookie Spencer Jones made four starts in right field before getting sent down May 23 and Cody Bellinger has started two games.
Yankees move prospect Carlos Lagrange to bullpen at Triple-A
The Yankees said Tuesday that prospect Carlos Lagrange is being moved to the bullpen at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre to possibly provide relief help at the major league level later this season.
“We definitely view him long term as a starter,” Boone said. “But in the 2026 lens, there’s a chance for him to potentially impact us out of the bullpen while not really disrupting anything moving forward.”
Lagrange is rated as New York’s fourth-best prospect by MLB Pipeline and the No. 2 pitcher.
Lagrange is 0-3 with a 4.41 ERA in 11 Triple-A starts. Across 49 innings, he has allowed 40 hits and 25 walks, striking out 63 while holding opponents to a .215 batting average.
The 23-year-old is averaging 98.9 mph on fastballs this season and has topped out at 103.0 mph on a fastball after spending time with the Yankees at spring training.
“It’s electric stuff,” Boone said. “The exciting thing for me was, really being around him for the first time, seeing the person and the competitor.”
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