BOSTON — There’s still no date set for Aaron Judge to get his fractured right rib imaged again, according to Aaron Boone, which means the Yankees can’t begin to point to a day when their best player might be back in the lineup.
It can’t come soon enough.
For a third straight game, the Yankees were held without a hit until at least the fifth inning.
And in Sunday’s 5-4, 10-inning loss that finished off a nightmarish weekend at Fenway Park, the Yankees didn’t get a hit against ex-Yankee Sonny Gray until the eighth.
Aaron Boone called it “a terrible weekend” made worse by Sunday’s performance.
“Overall, we’re not swinging the bats great this weekend,’’ Boone said. “We had some pitches to hit [and] just missed a couple of them.”
Clearly, they’re not very intimidating without Judge.
“Certainly, having Aaron Judge in the lineup changes our team in a profound way,’’ Boone said before the game.
They had scored just five runs over the first three games of the series and didn’t break through Sunday until Boston’s defense collapsed in the top of the ninth.
And in clutch situations, they’ve been especially bad, as they’re 7-for-72 with runners in scoring position since June 18.
“Give them credit, they threw the ball well,’’ hitting coach James Rowson said of Boston’s pitchers. “It was a tough couple of games, but in the grand scheme of things, I feel good about our guys and have confidence in them. You’re gonna have tough series and this, obviously, was one.”
Ben Rice has been especially impacted.
The first baseman had an OPS of 1.056 in 54 games before Judge went out with the rib fracture and entered Sunday with a .686 OPS in 23 games since then.
He went hitless Sunday.
Boone said Rice was fine at the plate without Judge before the last week, when the manager believes Rice has struggled.
He’s in a 2-for-28 slump, as the combination of not having Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Trent Grisham available has taken a toll.
“We’re going through it a little bit on the injury front, which gives you opportunities to find out about depth [and] who’s gonna be part of having a meaningful role moving forward.”
The Yankees will count on Rice the rest of the way, with or without Judge.
“I don’t see guys pressing, including Ben,’’ Rowson said. “When you miss that caliber of hitter Judge is, it’s an adjustment period for everyone. Guys have done a good job stepping up without Judge, and you’re gonna have stretches like this.”
Including Rice.
“Ben is already a threat in this league, with or without Judge,’’ Rowson said. “Pitchers gameplan against Ben Rice. Maybe it’s tougher for him now, but he’s capable and ready for it. We’ve got to bounce back.”
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But this was seen as a bit of a test for Rice, who has spent much of the first half of the season in the American League MVP race, typically hitting directly in front of or behind Judge.
The last few weeks have shown again how vital Judge is to their offense.
Boone said Judge was doing some upper-body work but was unclear what those workouts entailed.
Sunday marked four weeks since Judge last played in a game.
The Yankees are 12-12 in that stretch and after leading the league in homers and ranking second in OPS and fourth in runs with Judge, the Yankees are tied for sixth in homers but 19th in runs scored and 22nd in OPS since June 1.
Boone called his team an “incomplete [and] unfinished product” Sunday.
That’s especially true without Judge.