NEW YORK — Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge is dealing wirh a right elbow “issue,” according to manager Aaron Boone, and isn’t in the team’s lineup Saturday for just the second time this season.
Judge underwent testing on the elbow after experiencing discomfort throwing the baseball in Friday’s night loss for the second time this week. Boone said the team is awaiting results and opinions on the matter.
“Hopefully it’s something that’s manageable and we can get through it,” Boone said.
Judge’s elbow first flared up when he made a throw against the Toronto Blue Jays on Tuesday. He started as the Yankees’ designated hitter on Wednesday and returned to right field on Friday after an off day.
Losing Judge for any extended period would be a significant blow for a club that has struggled since mid-June and fallen 5 1/2 games behind the first-place Blue Jays in the American League East.
Judge, already a two-time AL MVP, is the frontrunner to win the award a third time. He leads the majors in batting average (.342) and OPS (1.160). His 37 home runs rank second.
Information from the Associated Press was used in this report.
