It stirred an unease across the Bronx when Aaron Judge winced and gripped his right hand after catching Alejandro Kirk’s seventh-inning fly in the right-field corner. The cameras caught him as he clenched his right hand into a fist. “It’s not much. It’s just probably a throw that didn’t feel great,” said manager Aaron Boone after the game as he downplayed the captain’s possible injury.

It straightaway contrasted with his Tuesday comments; Boone is now “obviously concerned.” He said it after it was confirmed that Judge will be missing Saturday’s game against the Philadelphia Phillies. It’s certainly a major worrying update for the Yankees’ roster that he is currently out with “elbow issues.”

Judge served as a designated hitter during Wednesday’s finale against the Blue Jays. Then, during Friday’s game, he took over the right field but couldn’t throw more than 55 mph. That’s certainly low for his standard.

He was sent for imaging after Friday, and it now seems to be raising fears about the severity of the injury. During a media appearance with skipper Boone, the interviewers implied the possibility of UCL. That, at times, leads to Tommy John surgery. It looks like the Yankees downplayed it big time when Judge felt the discomfort on Tuesday. Days later, they didn’t realize that the slugger was struggling. The two-time AL MVP’s right field future appears to be now in jeopardy.

The thing is, if Judge has to have a Tommy John surgery, then it probably means his days in right field are over. Well, that certainly shouldn’t happen, but if it does, then he will shift to first base, as Bryce Harper did in the Phillies. Not having Judge in the right field sounds every bit like a nightmare.

The Yankees are avoiding any speculations until the imaging results are out. The team doctors and Dr. Christopher Ahmad had taken over Judge’s evaluation, and there will be more updates once the Yankees open up about the imaging results.

Losing Aaron Judge could break the Yankees’ momentum

The star outfielder, Aaron Judge, was scratched from the Yankees’ Saturday lineup, their much-anticipated game against the Phillies. This is the first time this season that he has been out of a game due to an injury scare. The 33-year-old has been a crucial piece in the Yankees’ offense. It would be a massive blow for the Yankees if he is out even for a brief time. After all, throughout this season, the slugger has established himself as the front-runner to secure the AL MVP for the third time. It’s quite possible given his numbers.

He holds a slash line of .342/.449/.771 with 37 home runs. He is leading the league in total bases, OPS, OPS+, WAR, and hits. With the trade deadline inching closer, the Yankees’ strategy will obviously shift if Judge misses more games. It hasn’t been long since they added third baseman Ryan McMahon from the Colorado Rockies.

Well, for Judge, he has faced many injuries throughout his career in the big leagues. He appeared in the Yankees’ 158 regular games and 14 postseason games last season. His absence from Saturday’s lineup will mark the first time he has missed any game in the 2025 season.

Entering the weekend, the Yankees had a 56-47 record. They’re 5 1/2 games behind the first-place Blue Jays in the AL East. However, they have still grabbed the top wild-card spot in the AL. For them to go deep in this playoff, they can’t afford to pile up any losses in this stretch of the season. And that also means they can’t lose Judge at any point.

Currently, all have been holding their breath until there are more updates on Judge and his possible return.