New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge will miss a second straight game with general soreness in his side. Manager Aaron Boone made the announcement on Friday, but he didn't sound particularly alarmed about Judge's status moving forward:
Aaron Judge is out of the lineup today, Aaron Boone says. "Felt like I wanted to at least wait another day." Said treatment on side soreness has gone well and Judge hit in the cage today. No imaging tests. Will re-assess for tomorrow's game.
— Lindsey Adler (@lindseyadler) April 9, 2021
Judge was held out of Wednesday's game against the Orioles with the same injury, and Thursday was an off day for the Yankees. On Friday, they begin a three-game road series against the Rays, to whom they ceded the AL East title to last season and eventually fell to in the ALDS.
While at this juncture Judge's injury does not appear to be serious, health issues remain the leading subplot for the 28-year-old outfielder. This is Judge's sixth season in the majors, and already he's been on the injured list five times. Last year, a calf injury limited him to just 28 games during the abbreviated regular season. On the upside, that no MRI is planned and that Judge has been taking hacks are both promising developments that suggest he's likely to avoid an IL stint, at least barring setback.
In Judge's absence, Clint Frazier will likely continue manning right field while veteran Brett Gardner will be in left. Judge is off to a hot start in 2021, as he's slashing .364/.391/.636 with two home runs in five games.
