Projecting the Yankees Wild Card series lineup after brutal Aaron Judge's injury update

It felt like Aaron Judge was returning at the perfect time. A September return following a three-month stint on the IL gave Judge enough time to find his timing before the postseason. Unfortunately, Judge suffered another injury before the playoffs even began, hurting his calf in a game against the Minnesota Twins. The New York Yankees hoped it'd be minor, but it was serious enough for the team to place its captain on the Injured List. Now, it sounds as if a return for the Yankees' first postseason series is a long shot at best.

A "moderate grade" calf strain is serious enough for Yankees manager Aaron Boone to proceed as if his best player won't be active at all for the Wild Card series. That is an insanely difficult blow for a Yankees team that, with Judge, is as good as any in a weak American League. For the Yankees to advance to the ALDS and potentially get their captain back, they'll need to rely on this projected lineup below.

What the Yankees lineup could look like without Aaron Judge

Judge is an instrumental piece in the Yankees' lineup for a couple of reasons. First, he's the best hitter in the sport when healthy. That obviously matters. Second, Judge is one of the few right-handed bats on this roster. He provides much-needed balance that, without Judge, the Yankees lack.

This lineup still has some good pieces in it. Ben Rice has had a breakout year, Cody Bellinger is a well-rounded star, and trails only Yordan Alvarez and Pete Crow-Armstrong, the AL and NL MVP favorites, with a .532 slugging percentage. If Jazz Chisholm Jr. can return from the IL looking like the player he's capable of being, the Yankees can score runs.

The problem, though, is that six of the nine hitters in this lineup are left-handed, and most of them are much better against righties than lefties. The Yankees will use guys like Paul Goldschmidt and Amed Rosario against left-handed pitching, but having Heliot Ramos, who has a .672 OPS since being acquired by the Yankees at the deadline, in the No. 3 hole against righties isn't ideal. The Yankees don't have much of a choice with Judge out, though.

Ultimately, with Judge out, this is a team heavily reliant on lineup platoons. It'll be on Aaron Boone to try to push the right buttons in order to get this offense, which has been remarkably inconsistent without Judge, to score runs against (likely) a potent Boston Red Sox pitching staff.

Aaron Judge injury update: Can the Yankees expect their star to return?

What's most frustrating about the Judge injury update is that we have no idea what the injury is. The Yankees, for whatever reason, keep information regarding injuries, particularly to Judge, extremely close to the vest, making it difficult to know when or even if Judge will be back. All we know is that Judge is dealing with what Aaron Boone deems a "moderate" strain.

That doesn't sound good, especially for a player who has had trouble with the same right calf in the past. In the shortened 2020 season, Judge attempted to return from a calf strain in a couple of weeks, but wound up re-aggravating the injury, pushing his return back several weeks. Calf injuries and other soft-tissue ailments are not to be messed with, and can lead to a major setback if rushed through.

Plus, if the injury was minor, wouldn't the Yankees be quick to tell the world that? I'd love to say Judge is a lock to return at some point, but even if the Yankees were to advance to the ALDS, given how little we know and how tricky returns can be from calf injuries, it's probably wishful thinking to assume he'd be back right at the start of a potential ALDS, which is the last thign any New York fan wants to hear.

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