Even though Aaron Judge was showing signs of improvement, the New York Yankees elected to place the superstar slugger on the injured list.
To say Judge was not pleased with the decision would be kind.
“I’m still not happy about it,” Judge recently said, via the New York Post. “It is what it is. I’ll be back here in a couple days.”
The reigning American League MVP left last Thursday’s game against the Texas Rangers after feeling something “grab” in his hip. After undergoing an MRI the following day, Judge seemingly avoided a significant injury and figured to have a chance to return to the lineup sometime this week.
While the Yankees initially gave Judge’s injury a day-to-day timetable, the team elected to place him on the injured list retroactively to April 28.
Judge wanted to avoid the injured list altogether, but the Yankees had other ideas. According to the Post, Judge was disappointed that he wasn’t given an opportunity to do so, but the Bronx Bombers were already riddled with injuries.
“I asked for a couple days and got outweighed,’’ Judge said. “This whole area, the hip and oblique, you don’t want to mess with it.”
While Judge will likely return to the lineup at the beginning of next week, it’s quite clear that he never agreed with the IL decision. Perhaps it’s his competitive spirit doing the talking, as he played 157 games during the regular season in 2022, but the Yankees would rather be safe than sorry with the face of their franchise.
