Worldwide Sports News

Yankees captain Aaron Judge placed on injured list with flexor strain originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Yankees captain Aaron Judge, his teammates and New York’s fan base exhaled Saturday when the two-time AL MVP learned he has a flexor strain in his right elbow but no acute damage to his ulnar collateral ligament that might cause a long-term layoff.

Judge was sent for an MRI on Saturday and missed just his second game this season, a 9-4 loss to Philadelphia. He had a platelet-rich plasma injection and will go on the injured list but hopes to return to action in 10 days to two weeks, initially as a designated hitter.

“You never want to go in the tube. It’s never fun. You don’t know what’s going to show up,” Judge said. “That’s why I kind of pushed off a lot of that imaging and stuff like that because if I don’t know what’s going on, it can’t hurt you, I guess.”

Judge leads the major leagues with a .342 batting average and 1.160 OPS. He has 37 home runs and 85 RBIs for a New York team that opened a seven-game AL East lead by late May but dropped a season-high 6 1/2 games back of first-place Toronto on Saturday.

“All in all, we got good news today,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “I think all of us kind of feared the worst.”

Knowing how tough Judge is, Boone had been worried. Judge told Boone of throwing difficulty during Friday’s 12-5 loss to Philadelphia.

“I couldn’t throw past 60 feet,” Judge said. “We’re going up against a Phillies team, they can hit the ball over the park. I just didn’t want to put our pitchers in jeopardy, just not be able to come up and make a play for them.”

Boone received results of the scan just before the start of Saturday’s game, when team officials were getting some more evaluation. Because pain impacted his throwing but not hitting, Judge fought going on the IL.

“With that strain, then if you go out there and play with it you put the UCL in jeopardy, so we got to get that healed up,” Boone said.

Boone said it was too soon to determine whether highly regarded prospect Spencer Jones will be brought up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Judge likely won’t throw for 10 to 14 days, then will need a few days throwing to build back arm strength before returning to the outfield.

“I really was reluctant about going on any IL or anything like that,” Judge said. “I was like, ‘If I can hit, let me hit.’” he said. “I’ll start DHing, I think, once this 10th day is up.”

Giancarlo Stanton, the team’s primary DH, will start to work out in the outfield next week in order to help fill in for Judge.

“It’s never a relief knowing he’s going to be out at all, but for what it is, I guess you could say best case,” Stanton said.

Judge said he first felt the pain in the sixth inning of Tuesday’s game at Toronto, when George Springer singled to right in the sixth inning off Jonathan Loáisiga. Judge made a strong throw home in an attempt to prevent the tying run, but Davis Schneider just beat catcher Austin Wells’ tag.

An inning later, Judge winced after catching Alejandro Kirk’s seventh-inning fly in the right-field corner and throwing to second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. as Bo Bichette tagged up and went from second to third. Judge was caught by a YES Network camera clenching his right hand in a fist.

“He’s about as tough as they come and for him to even show any vulnerability or pain or whatever,” Boone said. “I knew we had an issue probably. And so any time you can fear the worst with that, but that’s why you wait to react, though. … We got the MRI and got a clear diagnosis with it.”

Yankees captain Aaron Judge placed on injured list with flexor strain originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Yankees captain Aaron Judge, his teammates and New York’s fan base exhaled Saturday when the two-time AL MVP learned he has a flexor strain in his right elbow but no acute damage to his ulnar collateral ligament that might cause a long-term layoff.

Judge was sent for an MRI on Saturday and missed just his second game this season, a 9-4 loss to Philadelphia. He had a platelet-rich plasma injection and will go on the injured list but hopes to return to action in 10 days to two weeks, initially as a designated hitter.

“You never want to go in the tube. It’s never fun. You don’t know what’s going to show up,” Judge said. “That’s why I kind of pushed off a lot of that imaging and stuff like that because if I don’t know what’s going on, it can’t hurt you, I guess.”

Judge leads the major leagues with a .342 batting average and 1.160 OPS. He has 37 home runs and 85 RBIs for a New York team that opened a seven-game AL East lead by late May but dropped a season-high 6 1/2 games back of first-place Toronto on Saturday.

“All in all, we got good news today,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “I think all of us kind of feared the worst.”

Knowing how tough Judge is, Boone had been worried. Judge told Boone of throwing difficulty during Friday’s 12-5 loss to Philadelphia.

“I couldn’t throw past 60 feet,” Judge said. “We’re going up against a Phillies team, they can hit the ball over the park. I just didn’t want to put our pitchers in jeopardy, just not be able to come up and make a play for them.”

Boone received results of the scan just before the start of Saturday’s game, when team officials were getting some more evaluation. Because pain impacted his throwing but not hitting, Judge fought going on the IL.

“With that strain, then if you go out there and play with it you put the UCL in jeopardy, so we got to get that healed up,” Boone said.

Boone said it was too soon to determine whether highly regarded prospect Spencer Jones will be brought up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Judge likely won’t throw for 10 to 14 days, then will need a few days throwing to build back arm strength before returning to the outfield.

“I really was reluctant about going on any IL or anything like that,” Judge said. “I was like, ‘If I can hit, let me hit.’” he said. “I’ll start DHing, I think, once this 10th day is up.”

Giancarlo Stanton, the team’s primary DH, will start to work out in the outfield next week in order to help fill in for Judge.

“It’s never a relief knowing he’s going to be out at all, but for what it is, I guess you could say best case,” Stanton said.

Judge said he first felt the pain in the sixth inning of Tuesday’s game at Toronto, when George Springer singled to right in the sixth inning off Jonathan Loáisiga. Judge made a strong throw home in an attempt to prevent the tying run, but Davis Schneider just beat catcher Austin Wells’ tag.

An inning later, Judge winced after catching Alejandro Kirk’s seventh-inning fly in the right-field corner and throwing to second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. as Bo Bichette tagged up and went from second to third. Judge was caught by a YES Network camera clenching his right hand in a fist.

“He’s about as tough as they come and for him to even show any vulnerability or pain or whatever,” Boone said. “I knew we had an issue probably. And so any time you can fear the worst with that, but that’s why you wait to react, though. … We got the MRI and got a clear diagnosis with it.”

Yankees captain Aaron Judge placed on injured list with flexor strain originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

Yankees captain Aaron Judge, his teammates and New York’s fan base exhaled Saturday when the two-time AL MVP learned he has a flexor strain in his right elbow but no acute damage to his ulnar collateral ligament that might cause a long-term layoff.

Judge was sent for an MRI on Saturday and missed just his second game this season, a 9-4 loss to Philadelphia. He had a platelet-rich plasma injection and will go on the injured list but hopes to return to action in 10 days to two weeks, initially as a designated hitter.

“You never want to go in the tube. It’s never fun. You don’t know what’s going to show up,” Judge said. “That’s why I kind of pushed off a lot of that imaging and stuff like that because if I don’t know what’s going on, it can’t hurt you, I guess.”

Judge leads the major leagues with a .342 batting average and 1.160 OPS. He has 37 home runs and 85 RBIs for a New York team that opened a seven-game AL East lead by late May but dropped a season-high 6 1/2 games back of first-place Toronto on Saturday.

“All in all, we got good news today,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “I think all of us kind of feared the worst.”

Knowing how tough Judge is, Boone had been worried. Judge told Boone of throwing difficulty during Friday’s 12-5 loss to Philadelphia.

“I couldn’t throw past 60 feet,” Judge said. “We’re going up against a Phillies team, they can hit the ball over the park. I just didn’t want to put our pitchers in jeopardy, just not be able to come up and make a play for them.”

Boone received results of the scan just before the start of Saturday’s game, when team officials were getting some more evaluation. Because pain impacted his throwing but not hitting, Judge fought going on the IL.

“With that strain, then if you go out there and play with it you put the UCL in jeopardy, so we got to get that healed up,” Boone said.

Boone said it was too soon to determine whether highly regarded prospect Spencer Jones will be brought up from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

Judge likely won’t throw for 10 to 14 days, then will need a few days throwing to build back arm strength before returning to the outfield.

“I really was reluctant about going on any IL or anything like that,” Judge said. “I was like, ‘If I can hit, let me hit.’” he said. “I’ll start DHing, I think, once this 10th day is up.”

Giancarlo Stanton, the team’s primary DH, will start to work out in the outfield next week in order to help fill in for Judge.

“It’s never a relief knowing he’s going to be out at all, but for what it is, I guess you could say best case,” Stanton said.

Judge said he first felt the pain in the sixth inning of Tuesday’s game at Toronto, when George Springer singled to right in the sixth inning off Jonathan Loáisiga. Judge made a strong throw home in an attempt to prevent the tying run, but Davis Schneider just beat catcher Austin Wells’ tag.

An inning later, Judge winced after catching Alejandro Kirk’s seventh-inning fly in the right-field corner and throwing to second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. as Bo Bichette tagged up and went from second to third. Judge was caught by a YES Network camera clenching his right hand in a fist.

“He’s about as tough as they come and for him to even show any vulnerability or pain or whatever,” Boone said. “I knew we had an issue probably. And so any time you can fear the worst with that, but that’s why you wait to react, though. … We got the MRI and got a clear diagnosis with it.”

WhilePete Alonso has made a name for himself with his hitting and is just five home runs shy of breaking Darryl Strawberry's Mets franchise record, it's been his defense that's helping New York win games as of late.

Alonso dazzled in Saturday night's 2-1 win over the San Francisco Giants, making a couple of nice picks at first base and ending the game on an incredible leaping catch. His defensive performance earned praise from manager Carlos Mendoza, who made sure the first baseman was going to get the credit he deserves.

“Unbelievable. He doesn’t get enough credit because of his defense, but he’s elite,” Mendoza said. “Especially when we’re talking about receiving throws, using the whole bag, the footwork, just the target, and making plays that he can get to.

“We saw it again today. Hell of a pick on a [Francisco] Lindor play, that play to end the game right that, another throw where he had to come off the base. There’s a lot of positive from him defensively. I’ve been saying it all along. He doesn’t get enough credit.”

Starting pitcher David Peterson, who allowed just one run over six strong innings of work, also thanked Alonso for helping him get out of a couple jams. The left-hander added that it wasn't just Saturday's win where Alonso's defense came up big, but is instead something that's been going on all season long.

"He's been doing it all year,” Peterson said. "He had a couple really good ones today. He works his butt off before the games trying to get better. He's been really solid for us.

"To have a guy over there like that that you can trust and know that if you’re in a pinch and you need to get it out, he’s over there and he’s going to do his best to stay on or get the out however he can. It’s a comforting feeling knowing, especially for me trying to get the ball on the ground. It’s been awesome.”

When asked about comparing his jumping catch vs. a big home run, Alonso said he was simply happy to help the team win their sixth straight game.

"It's awesome to be able to end the game right there, it was big time,” Alonso said. “I know that our pitchers did an absolutely phenomenal job, but really happy I was able to contribute there."

He added: “I always want the ball hit to me. Just anticipating the ball. I was really happy to do it right there.”

Overall, Alonso is proud of the strides he's made with his glove.

“Defensively, I feel like I’ve improved as the season’s went on and I feel like I’m in a really good spot right now,” Alonso said.

Mark Vientos showing 'ability to turn the page'

New York couldn't get anything going offensively through the first five innings of Saturday's game. They left runners on base in two big spots, including a bases-loaded and no-out situation in the fourth inning as Mark Vientos struck out and Francisco Alvarez grounded into an inning-ending double play.

Vientos and the Mets got another scoring opportunity in the sixth inning, and this time they weren't going to waste it away. The third baseman drove in two runs on a double to give NY a 2-1 lead, which they'd hold on to for the win.

After the game, Mendoza said what he's seen recently from the 25-year-old has been "a really good sign" going forward.

“I think the biggest thing for me was, after he didn’t get the job done with the bases loaded there, he doesn’t get down and he gets another opportunity right there and comes through, Mendoza said. “So that’s a really good sign, especially when it’s been hard for you and that’s the case for Mark.

"So not missing pitches, even though he missed on the first at-bat with the bases loaded, the one he fouled off, but doing a better job of controlling the strike zone and finding holes. You need a hit like that the one tonight, ended up being the biggest hit of the night. I think his ability to turn the page was good to see tonight.”

Vientos extended his hitting streak to six games with the double and was happy to "come through" in the big moment.

"Felt really good, felt really good to get that second chance and come through for the boys,” Vientos said. “Got a good pitch to hit and put a good swing on it.”

Vientos added that he's been focusing on the little things while at the plate and the results are now showing.

“Yeah I feel a lot better,” Vientos said. “The things that I’m focused on are a lot better at the plate. It’s helping me get better results for sure.”

“Sticking to my approach. Doubling down on it. When I get my pitch, not missing it.”