Aaron Judge debuted in MLB with the New York Yankees in 2016 and developed himself as the team’s biggest name since the era of Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter. With his career .291 average and 385 HRs, the 7x All-Star always proved himself a team man. He stayed with New York despite his numbers deserving a higher payroll. However, loyalty comes at a cost, and Judge might just have paid it, leaving his team in the worst scenario possible.

“Big G’s hurt, Max Fried’s hurt. We had a lot of guys banged up. You’ve got to be out there. That’s what they’re paying me to do, to go out there and play.” MLB insider Bryan Hoch quoted Aaron Judge as he answered about why he continued playing with an injury.

It was first believed that Aaron Judge’s right toe injury from 2023 came back to haunt him again. But according to him, his latest rib injury might have been sustained during a game against the Astros in late April. He made a diving catch off a flyball by the Astros’ Dustin Harris. While Judge showed no sign of injury on the field and went on to bat 3-for-3, including a home run, the injury kept getting worse.

He continued playing with a stress fracture in his right rib for more than a month before the pain became unbearable and forced him to the injured list. Reason? Aaron Judge was compensating for the loss of a few more names. The Yankees fans have experienced Giancarlo Stanton, Jasson Dominguez, and Max Fried getting sidelined with injuries. They have even missed Gerrit Cole since last year. But with Aaron Judge, the Yankees are bracing for far worse.

The Yankees captain is estimated to miss around 4-6 weeks, but with how his injury updates are developing, the IL could get extended. Concerns over his career are also rising. With how the rib is fractured, a further escalation could take away Judge from the diamond. Even manager Aaron Boone is skeptical whether Judge could even come back this season.

“Well, none of us are guaranteed tomorrow. There’s always a scenario. The expectation is that he will be, it will heal, and we’ll go from there,” SNY Yankees quoted Boone.

Back in 2023, Judge missed around 42 games due to injury. The Yankees posted a 19-23 record in his absence and plummeted in the standings. They finished with an 82-80 record, their worst season since 1995. This time, Judge’s IL could go beyond 42 games and once again prove the allegations right that the Yankees fail to manage injuries properly.

The Yankees are infamous for mismanaging injuries

A proper rest and treatment could have saved Aaron Judge from missing extended time, but the Yankees’ front office failed to manage this injury well. And this is not the first time.

During the PED scandal, Rodriguez publicly accused the Yankees’ medical staff and front office of actively misleading the player about the severity of his hip injury. Back then, it was claimed that the team’s doctors cleared A-Rod to play despite his injury. The team allegedly told a surgeon they did not want him to play again to avoid paying his contract.

Last year, the Yankees faced heavy backlash from fans and analysts when they misjudged Anthony Volpe’s injury. Volpe reportedly played for over two months with a partially torn labrum that clearly hindered his offensive output. The Yankees allowed him to play through the injury before ultimately giving him a cortisone shot and sitting him for a significant recovery period.

So, Aaron Judge’s injury is the latest addition to the Yankees’ infamous players’ injury history. However, chances are high that it could become the worst in the Yankees’ history.