The New York Yankees are once again experiencing life without Aaron Judge.
Yankees’ Aaron Boone Provides Giancarlo Stanton Update After Aaron Judge Injury originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The New York Yankees are one of the best teams in the AL, but the absence of Aaron Judge changes the equation. The 33-year-old is on the 10-day IL with a flexor strain in his right elbow, which puts the Yankees in a bind.
Losing Judge for any extended period doesn't just mean losing a star; it means losing the best hitter of this generation. The AL MVP favorite leads baseball with a .342 batting average and a 1.160 OPS, and he's third in both homers (37) and RBI (85).
On top of that, Judge's injury affects fellow slugger Giancarlo Stanton. Judge plays right field while Stanton designated hits, but the latter player could be forced to play outfield for the first time since 2023 if Judge is too injured to throw upon return. In that case, Judge would be the designated hitter.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone explained the team's plans for Stanton before Monday's bout with the Tampa Bay Rays, via SNY.
"Yeah, sure," he said about the Yankees considering playing Stanton in the outfield. "But even right now, [envisioning] bringing Judgie back initially, you still got Jasson [Dominguez], Grish [Trent Grisham], and Belli [Cody Bellinger], so I don't view it a lot."
"But obviously want to keep G playing as much as we can, and [have] his bat in there," he continued. "Want to get a feel of what it [him playing in the outfield] ooks like, how he's responding. I want to hear his thoughts on it. Does he feel like it's a real option? And then to have that in your pocket, sure, it's a nice something to have where it gives you more bench flexibility on a given day."
Aaron Boone on Giancarlo Stanton potentially playing the outfield again:
— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) July 28, 2025
"Obviously want to keep G playing as much as we can...want to get a feel of what it looks like, how he's responding" pic.twitter.com/q758Wr7RZk
Stanton is slashing .276/.355/.520 with seven homers and 20 RBI over 29 games this season. The 35-year-old tallied 27 homers and 72 RBI over 114 regular-season games last year before notching seven homers and 16 RBI over 14 playoff contests.
New York is 5.5 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays for first place in the AL East and one game ahead of the Boston Red Sox for the first Wild Card spot.
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This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jul 28, 2025, where it first appeared.
Category: Baseball
