Ominous Aaron Judge update throws more than just this Yankees season into chaos

The New York Yankees have finally started righting the ship, with a sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals over the weekend pulling the team back into a tie atop the AL Wild Card standings with the Boston Red Sox and Seattle Mariners. But just when it seemed like the team might be able to salvage this season after all, here comes an Aaron Judge injury update to throw everything into doubt again.

In an interview with WFAN on Tuesday, manager Aaron Boone was asked about how New York plans to handle star outfielder Aaron Judge as he attempts to come back from a flexor tendon strain in his throwing elbow. Both Judge and the Yankees have insisted that the injury wasn't the worst-case scenario; Judge is already back in the lineup as the DH, and he's resumed a throwing program with the goal of getting back into right field as soon as possible.

Now, though, it seems like that might not be as realistic as the Yankees first implied. "I don't think we're going to see him back to throwing like he normally does at any point this year," Boone said on Tuesday. "We're trying to get through where he can let it go with ease and be able to protect himself."

The fact that this injury is apparently serious enough to hamper Judge's throwing ability for the rest of the season is ... ominous, to put it mildly. And while you can't blame him for trying to fight through it amid a tight pennant race, it's worth wondering whether this is just delaying the inevitable — especially considering New York's spotty history managing injuries like this.

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Is it just a matter of time before Aaron Judge needs surgery for injured elbow?

"The fact that the ligament is intact is good news ... I think we were all kind of worried that it could be [Tommy John surgery]. That's ruled out. Now it's just making sure it's healed and recovered."

No, that wasn't Boone talking about Judge. It was Boone talking about another outfielder: Aaron Hicks, who landed on the IL in early August of 2019 with a flexor strain in his throwing elbow. Like with Judge, Boone and the Yankees insisted that some rest and recovery would allow Hicks to return before too long. Less than three months later, Hicks was going under the knife for the Tommy John procedure New York had sworn wouldn't be necessary.

This is the harsh reality of flexor tendon injuries: They're often precursors to surgery. Right now, it sure sounds like Judge is trying to push through a situation that's going to require Tommy John at some point if he ever wants to throw normally again. If Judge feels like he can still hit, it's hard to blame him for wanting to put that surgery off until after the season ends rather than missing a chance for a postseason run.

Of course, it's not quite that simple. The Yankees already have a slugger who really should be strictly a DH at this point in his career: Giancarlo Stanton, who happens to be swinging a very hot bat at the moment. If Judge was mere weeks away from manning right field again at full health, New York could get by. But it seems far more likely that Judge is going to be restricted to mostly DH duties, with starts in the outfield here and there. If so, what happens to Stanton? Will he need to play right field more often? And how would his body hold up to the increased wear and tear that requires?

This has already been an injury-ravaged season for the Yankees, who have lost both Gerrit Cole and Clarke Schmidt to Tommy John. It's hard to blame Judge or the team for wanting to give this team every chance before calling it quits, but the downside is falling short this season and being without No. 99 for at least the first two months of 2026.