ST. PETERSBURG, Florida. – Aaron Judge returned to the Yankees lineup and right field on Saturday against the Rays after losing the previous two games with pain on his left side.
But there is still not much clarity about the judge’s “injury” situation.
After the judge had a hit and two offense shots in a 4-0 defeat at Tropicana Field, manager Aaron Boone said the right football player looked good.
The judge, who had last played on Tuesday, noted Wednesday’s game, before Thursdays off Yankees Day.
When asked what he was told the judge was ready to return, Boone said, “He.”
Despite the judge’s return, Boone said the Yankees “will monitor him closely. … We will certainly monitor how he is moving.”
If the judge does not report any issues, Boone said he expects it to start again on Sunday.
Still, there was no answer left to what happened to the judge in the first place.
“I think it was a kind of gradual workload,” Boone said. “He probably swayed a lot, did a lot of work in the cage, which caused a pain that developed over time.”
And that came less than a week into the regular season.
Boone said the judge wanted to play Friday, but the manager wanted to be cautious with the injury-prone slugger, who has had rib and oblique problems in the past. The Yankees have not yet specified exactly what the judge was dealing with. When he also missed the last three games of spring training, the team said the first two were rest days and the third was because he had allergies.
“It’s always good to write your name there,” Boone said. “We are just trying to be careful with him soon [in the season], not wanting this to become something that becomes a problem. We hope that we will be able to overcome it ”.
The referee scored a goal in each of his previous two games, but on Wednesday he was not comfortable on the bases or on the field.
Jay Bruce hit ninth place for the first time in his career on Saturday and went from 0 to 3, extending his fall to 3 of 27. He is inexorable in 14 bats in a row.
“In the first three or four games he had a lot of good bats,” Boone said. “The last couple games have cost them a bit. This will happen throughout the season. It’s been a bit off. “
As for how Bruce plays at first base, Boone said, “I think he’s done a lot of good things,” but he needs more time on the spot for the plays to be “second nature” to him. There is still room for growth there. ”
Gio Urshela said he felt “much better” after moving to the COVID-19 injury list on Friday after an adverse reaction to the Johnson & Johnson vaccine left him “a little weak” on Thursday and Friday.
Clint Frazier, unsuccessful in 13 bats, didn’t start Saturday, but Boone said it was “just a day [off]”, With left-hander Brett Gardner going against Rays right-hander Chris Archer.
Boone said Frazier remains his first left-hander, adding that he did not believe Frazier had been “pressing.”
“It’s a few games, he’s struggled and he’s a little off,” Boone said. “It is part of the ebbs and flows [of a season]. It’s not something that worries me in the long run. It will overcome it ”.
Left-back Justin Wilson, activated on Friday from IL for 10 days after being swollen in his left shoulder, said he was “fine”. He threw an unscored entry on Saturday.