Aaron Judge Returns to a Yankees Lineup That Hasn’t Skipped a Beat

A familiar face was back in the Yankees’ lineup on Friday, but in an unfamiliar position: Aaron Judge, starting as the leadoff hitter for the first time in his career. The Yankees put Judge, who missed two full months with a left oblique strain, in the No. 1 spot to get him as many at-bats as possible, but that placement also underscored the strength of the lineup he rejoined.

The Yankees are undoubtedly better with Judge, 27, a two-time All-Star and the 2016 American League Rookie of the Year, and his return brought a fresh jolt of energy to a team that has thrived with a makeshift lineup necessitated by a rash of injuries.

“I don’t have to tell you how great of a player he is and what it means to our club,” Yankees Manger Aaron Boone said before Friday’s game against the Houston Astros.

Injuries, and wins in spite of them, have defined the 2019 Yankees season to this point, with 20 players spending time on the injured list. (The same number of Yankees spent time on the injured list all of last season.)

But with the season’s midpoint approaching, the Yankees have welcomed back several starters: Shortstop Didi Gregorius, who had Tommy John surgery in October, made his 2019 debut on June 7, and outfielder Giancarlo Stanton returned to the lineup on Tuesday after spending the past two months recovering from biceps, shoulder and calf injuries.

And on June 16, the Yankees traded for Edwin Encarnacion, the first baseman-designated hitter who led the league in home runs with 23 entering Friday’s game.

For the Yankees’ rivals, the reality of these upgrades for a team that entered the weekend at 47-27 — and ranked fourth in the major leagues in runs per game — is surely daunting. Despite all the moving parts, the Yankees have shown few signs of struggle as players such as Gio Urshela, D.J. LeMahieu and Cameron Maybin stepped up to fill the holes. The Yankees entered Friday four and a half games ahead of the Tampa Bay Rays in the A.L. East.

“This is nothing new,” Judge said of his teammates’ performance.

Judge, who batted .288 with five homers in the 20 games before his injury, said he was particularly excited about the addition of Encarnacion.

“It’s going to be fun,” Judge said while conceding that the roster turnover was a bit disorienting. “I don’t know where I fit in,” he said.

Boone said he planned on giving Judge a day off every four or five games. “I’ll take it slow with him,” the manager said. “I feel like he’s physically in a really good spot. I feel like he has been now for a while, and I feel like he’s ready to go and will impact us in a big way.”

Although it was initially unclear who would lose playing time with Judge back in the lineup and in right field, a new injury was revealed Friday. Outfielder Aaron Hicks has been out of the starting lineup for the past two games with right shoulder discomfort, and on Friday he said he had received a cortisone shot and had a magnetic resonance imaging exam. Boone said that he did not expect Hicks to be placed on the injured list and that he hoped to have him back in the lineup Saturday.

The Yankees’ roster on Friday had five outfielders, a rarity for a major league team. During his recent minor league rehabilitation assignment, Judge joked with reporters that he “didn’t know if he could crack the lineup” because everyone had been playing so well, including Maybin.

The Yankees elected to keep Maybin on the roster, instead sending relief pitcher Nestor Cortes Jr. to Class AAA to make room for Judge. While hitting has not been a weakness for the Yankees, the team is expected to explore ways to improve its struggling pitching staff ahead of the July 31 trade deadline.

What they will not have to worry about anymore, they hope, is Judge and his health. While he couldn’t fulfill his stated goal this year of staying off the I.L., after missing a month and a half last season with a fractured right wrist, he said on Friday that he was ready to put injuries behind him.

“I have to get back on the field and play,” Judge said. “I’m not going to try and baby it or go at 80 percent. We are in the major leagues.”

Source: Read Full Article