Key Points
Bullet point summary by AI
- The Yankees face a critical trade deadline with a weak American League waiting but Aaron Judge sidelined.
- One of baseball's most potent lineups remains incomplete as imaging shows the Judge is still healing without a return date.
- The Yankees' strategy now hinges on modest upgrades and the hope that this dominant force returns by September.
The New York Yankees are heading towards a pivotal trade deadline as they look to take advantage of a weak American League to return to the World Series. Even though they are in the Wild Card mix right now, the Yankees entered Sunday night's game with the Los Angeles Dodgers with the best run differential (+84) in the AL and only two games back of the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East.
The big fly in the ointment, however, is the continued absence of star outfielder Aaron Judge with a rib injury. Judge wasn't cleared to resume baseball activities after being imaged during the All Star Break, leaving him without a timetable to return to the Yankees' lineup.
The team has maintained public confidence that Judge will be back at some point this season, but they haven't issued any sort of timetable yet. The imaging that Judge underwent showed that he is healing but has not done enough to resume baseball activities, which means he won't be back before the Aug. 3 trade deadline.
How Aaron Judge's injury could impact the Yankees' deadline plans
If Judge was healthy right now, the Yankees would surely be an aggressive buyer at the deadline with an opportunity to get back to the World Series in a weak AL. The problem, however, is that Judge looked quite mortal in May after suffering the injury on a dive in Houston, hitting just .243 with five home runs and 18 RBI with an .805 OPS in 103 at bats.
That kind of production is above average for a big leaguer and would help the Yankees, but they didn't build their team around that version of Judge. The lineup is built on the idea that Judge can be a 60-homer goliath that creates havoc around him, instilling enough fear in opposing pitchers that his teammates get better pitches to hit.
Since the Yankees are in no jeopardy of missing the playoffs in the AL, where the last Wild Card is currently held by the 50-48 Boston Red Sox, they make look at making more modest adds to their team. As much as fans may not like to hear it, the Yankees can look to their own injured list as potential deadline acquisitions with Max Fried, Carlos Rodon and Giancarlo Stanton on the mend in addition to Judge.
The fact that the deadline appears to be a seller's market is also working against the Yankees, whose farm system is very top heavy and lacks the depth to make the kinds of impact deals to add talent to help fill Judge's production. A more measured approach could see the Yankees look to make targeted strikes to upgrade at catcher and improve in the bullpen, rounding out the edges of the team and hoping Judge can return to form by September.
The fortune of this season will depend entirely on how Judge manages to return from his rib injury. No rental will make up for Judge's absence, meaning the Yankees' season will depend entirely on whether Judge can return in good enough form to power New York to the pennant.
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