Aaron Judge returns to Yankees after 99-day absence
In New York, USA, New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge returned to the field after a 99-day absence due to a rib fracture. In the opening game of the series against the Colorado Rockies, he was in the starting lineup as the right fielder and third in the batting order, Korea Herald reports.
In his first at-bat, Judge took two balls from rookie Gabriel Hughes, fouled off two pitches, and then missed a four-seam fastball. Taking the field in the top of the first inning, the Yankees captain smiled and touched the NY emblem on his uniform several times.
Gradual return
Team manager Aaron Boone said that Judge would not play the entire game, although the player himself wanted to. According to him, the baseball player will likely miss one of the games in the current series.
The three-time American League Most Valuable Player missed 84 games since his last appearance on May 31. He tried to convince Boone to activate him immediately after center fielder Trent Grisham strained his hamstring on Friday. Boone explained that Judge still had to meet several necessary requirements before returning.
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On Monday, the 34-year-old player held a batting workout at Yankee Stadium, and that evening the club activated him from the 60-day injured list. Before Tuesday's game, Judge hit several balls over the fence to right, center, and left field during practice.
Impact on the Yankees' offense
Before his return, Judge had a .248 batting average, 17 home runs, 38 RBIs, and a .907 OPS this season. He was initially injured on April 26 in Houston when he tried to avoid a collision with second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. during an unsuccessful attempt to make a diving catch.
At the time of Judge's last game on May 31, the Yankees had a 36–23 record, and during his absence they recorded 45 wins and 39 losses. The team's batting average fell from .243 in the first 59 games to .227 without the captain; that figure ranked 29th among the 30 MLB clubs. Boone noted that Judge's presence creates more favorable batting opportunities for his teammates.
Before the game, the Yankees had 81 wins and 62 losses, were four games behind American League East leaders Tampa Bay, and were two wins ahead of Boston in the race for the first wild-card spot.
