Captain Aaron Judge is accompanying his team, the New York Yankees, on their trip to the West Coast for the next six games. The aim is to continue to ramp up baseball activities as he nears his return to the lineup. With the postseason only a month away, the Yankees need Judge’s offensive flair. Now, manager Aaron Boone has given a tentative timeline on Judge’s much-anticipated return.

“I think it’s possible,” said Boone when asked whether Judge can return sometime during the next homestand, per YES Network. “I’m not going to put a date on it, but I think those things are in play now. It’s, again about getting the durability and the workload built up on him, which is the biggest thing now.”

On April 26 in Houston, Aaron Judge landed awkwardly trying to make a diving catch in the outfield. As a result, he injured his rib and played through the pain for a month before landing on the IL.

MRI results revealed a stress fracture in his first right rib, the same one he injured in 2019 while diving for a fly ball. Back then, he not only suffered from a stress fracture but also a collapsed lung. Fortunately, his lungs are unscathed this time around.

Judge was given an initial timeline of four to six weeks. But multiple MRI scans showed that healing was slower than expected. The 34-year-old MVP was not cleared to start baseball activities until August. But once he started, his progress has been rapid.

After going through tee-and-toss drills and indoor batting practice, Judge expects to face real, high-velocity pitching sometime this week as the Yankees play against the Los Angeles Angels and the San Diego Padres.

“He is doing well. He’s here to kind of continue to ramp up baseball activities,” said Boone further, per YES Network. “So, you know, we’re getting closer, but feel good about where he’s at.”

Judge himself is also optimistic about his progress. The Yankees are primarily focused on gradually building his workload, but Judge hopes to forgo a minor league assignment. However, once he returns to the lineup, he will likely be looking at a designated hitter role.

“Why waste at-bats? Why waste anything down in a minor league game?” Judge told ESPN. “I’ve been doing this for a while now, and I got a sense of what I need to do on the field and how to manage it. So why waste the at-bats in Double-A or Triple-A?”

Judge was batting .248 with 17 home runs and 38 RBIs this season. If he decides to skip a minor league assignment, Judge can be back in action as early as September 8, when the Yankees host the Colorado Rockies.

For Yankees fans, Aaron Judge’s possible return to the lineup is not the only piece of good news. The Yankees have also likely escaped a scare surrounding their rookie sensation, George Lombard Jr.

George Lombard Jr. update provides relief

George Lombard Jr. capped his adventurous debut with a knee injury on Saturday. In the second inning of the Yankees’ 9-2 victory in Game 2 of the doubleheader against the Boston Red Sox, Lombard Jr. tweaked his knee.

The rookie reportedly felt something was off with his right knee while checking a swing. Lombard Jr. felt discomfort as he hopped off the batter’s box on one leg and clutched his knee. However, the 21-year-old stayed long enough to hit a single on the next pitch, then returned to shortstop in the following frame.

“Felt something a little off,” Lombard Jr. told the New York Post. “It was kind of one of those weird, freak things where it was kind of a check swing, and then also [trying] to get out of the way of the pitch.”

However, once he flew out in the third inning, the Yankees pulled him from the game. Lombard Jr. went straight to the New York-Presbyterian Hospital for MRI scans. Now, the results are out

It is safe to say that Lombard Jr. and the Yankees have the results they were hoping for. Lombard Jr. is currently listed day-to-day. Though he has some inflammation, the imaging shows he can avoid an IL stint for now.

“Imaging showed no structural damage for George Lombard Jr. (right knee). He is day-to-day for now, Aaron Boone said,” Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reported on X.

After the Yankees recalled Lombard Jr. earlier in August, he is batting .253 through his first 23 games, with two homers and four extra-base hits in 87 plate appearances.