PHILADELPHIA — Aaron Judge continues to feel better in his recovery from a right rib fracture, just not good enough for significant progress.
Ten days after undergoing imaging on his right rib stress fracture that showed healing but not to the extent that allowed him to be cleared for baseball activities, the Yankees captain remains in a holding pattern while waiting on more healing.
“I know the last couple days, in my conversations with him before I came on the trip, he felt quite a bit better and was encouraged with how he was feeling,” manager Aaron Boone said Saturday at Citizens Bank Park. “I know he’s been rehabbing at home, I think he’s coming down here maybe [Sunday]. We’re just in that still letting-it-heal mode to the end.”
It has now been almost two months since Judge played in a game — May 31 — and the Yankees entered Saturday 22-22 without him.
The Yankees continue to say they expect him back at some point this season, but a timeline for that to actually happen is impossible to know until he is cleared for baseball activities — which won’t be done until another round of imaging shows more healing.
In the meantime, the Yankees offense has been a shell of itself without the back-to-back AL MVP.
Since June 1 — the day after Judge played his last game — the Yankees’ four runs per game were the fifth lowest in the majors.
Their 89 wRC+ (weighted runs created, where 100 is league average) was the third-worst.
Their .680 OPS was the fourth-worst, their .223 batting average the second-worst and their .286 on-base percentage the worst.
Their 26 percent strikeout rate was also the worst, and their 7.7 percent walk rate the sixth-worst.
Giancarlo Stanton (right calf strain) is still in the midst of a running progression — not yet on the bases — but like Judge, remains without a timeline for a return.
“I know he ran, everything went well [Friday],” Boone said. “But not to the end game yet.”
Carlos Rodón threw a two-up (simulating two innings) bullpen session Saturday as he works back from left elbow inflammation.
If he recovers well from it, the Yankees are hoping he can advance to facing hitters next week.
With the Phillies using lefty opener Tim Mayza, Amed Rosario led off Saturday’s game for the Yankees.
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But the veteran right-handed hitter has been in a rough stretch of late — not unlike many of his teammates.
Entering Saturday, Rosario was batting just .179 with a .590 OPS over his last 23 games, including going 1-for-16 with a .180 OPS over his last 10 games.
He has gotten most of his action against lefties, whom he has crushed over the course of his career, though that has not been the case recently.
