A top MLB insider believes the New York Yankees have a legitimate reason for concern when it comes to the recent injury to superstar Aaron Judge.
The 2023 campaign for the New York Yankees has been a frustrating one. After re-signing reigning MVP Aaron Judge to a massive long-term deal and adding ace Carlos Rodon to a team that went to the American League Championship Series, they have underperformed this season.
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Certainly, the New York Yankees have terrible luck in being in the best division in the sport over the first two months of the season as the Tampa Bay Rays and Baltimore Orioles continue their torrid pace. However, their 38-29 record heading into the week hasn’t been the result of just being in the AL East.
Injuries have been a major hindrance all season — especially to their starting staff — and several of their key youngsters have had awful starts. However, the team hit another major hurdle this week when they placed Aaron Judge on the injured list after hurting his toe on a fantastic catch in a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers last week.
New York Yankees record (2023): 38-29
While a toe injury shouldn’t seem like a big deal compared to the injuries that can occur to MLB players, it seems a notable league insider feels it is a serious cause for concern for the New York Yankees.
During an appearance on “The Brady Farkas Show” last week, ESPN MLB insider Buster Olney explained why the injury could be a real long-term problem for Judge and the New York Yankees if he can’t properly recover from it.
“DJ LeMahieu, his teammate, spoke with reporters about his toe injury last year and how it could be a real big deal. Last Saturday when he made that incredible catch and smashed through the wall at Dodger Stadium, there were a lot of jokes about how Aaron Judge met the wall and he won. Well in fact, the wall did, because I went out there the next day. There’s a six-inch rise of concrete that comes out of the ground, he smashed his right foot against that.
“Not only is he going to be on the injured list but you do wonder, going forward, as a hitter, how much that’s going to affect him and his performance and maintaining his balance in the box?”
– Buster Olney
One has to wonder if Judge will rush back if the team hits a slump during his time on the IL and sets up a major problem this summer. LeMahieu missed close to 40 games dealing with is toe injury in 2022.