PHOENIX — New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, speaking for the first time since going on the injured list with a strained right calf, provided no timeline Saturday for when he could possibly return to the lineup.
“I’d like to be back by the postseason, so we’ll see," Judge said. “That’s definitely the plan. I got really no answers for you on any timeline or anything like that.’’
Judge, who missed three months with a fractured rib, is eligible to come off the injured list for the regular-season finale on Sept. 27. He injured his calf in his first at-bat Wednesday playing against the Minnesota Twins. The injury is in the soleus muscle of the calf, which makes it difficult to participate in any baseball activities, he said, except throwing to keep
his arm in shape.
“Definitely frustrated,’’ Judge, the three-time MVP, said. “I’ve dealt with strains before, and kind of played through them, but this was kind of in a different spot where it made it a little bit more difficult. But definitely frustrated because, you know, the ultimate goal was to try to come back to get a couple of games before the postseason, so it changes it a little bit.’’
While Judge opted to resume playing with the Yankees instead of having a traditional minor-league rehab stint after such a lengthy absence, he isn’t second-guessing his decision, nor for coming out of Wednesday’s game when he first felt his calf strain.
“You know, you feel things every single year,’’ Judge said. “I usually deal with calf stuff all year long, and it usually gets to you, and usually don’t miss any games. So that was kind of the same thing I was feeling.
“I was feeling it. I was working my way back, and then something kind of grabs you at a strange time. So if this would have happened in the rehab game, I would have been probably a little bit more pissed than I was now.
“So, it is what it is.’’
The Yankees, who are in the No. 1 wild-card spot, are expected to host the Boston Red Sox in a best-of-three series beginning Sept. 29 in the wild-card round at Yankee Stadium. The winner would play the first-place Tampa Bay Rays in the Division Series.
Follow Nightengale on X: @Bnightengale
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Aaron Judge would 'like to be back by the postseason' but has no timeline for Yankees return
