Yankees Notes: Judge, Volpe, Cruz

"Aaron Judge has been hampered by a flexor strain in recent weeks. He first spent a minimum stint on the injured list to rest his ailing elbow, and since returning he's been limited to exclusively DH work. Earlier this week, some questions were raised about just what shape Judge will be able to get his throwing arm back into before the end of the year."

"The reigning AL MVP told reporters (including MLB.com's Bryan Hoch) today that was about "checking a box" in his rehab and that he's sticking purely to what the team's trainers tell him to do as he works his way back into condition to resume regular duties in the outfield. Manager Aaron Boone, meanwhile, told reporters (including The Athletic's Brendan Kuty) that while Judge "looked good" throwing to second base today, there's still no timetable for his return to the grass in a game setting."

"Boone emphasized that the club feels it's important to take Judge's recovery process slowly in order to avoid re-injury. That, of course, makes sense given how important Judge's 196 wRC+ bat is to the lineup. Judge's .218/.386/.418 (126 wRC+) slash line since returning from the IL on August 5 isn't quite as robust as his usual otherworldly numbers, but it's still well above average production that virtually any other hitter in the sport would be happy with."

"In the meantime, Giancarlo Stanton has begun playing in right field as a temporary solution to get his bat in the lineup while Judge occupies the DH slot. Stanton's return to the outfield isn't the only shakeup of the Yankees lineup from the past few days. Shortstop Anthony Volpe has had a rough year on both sides of the ball, and today Boone made the decision to leave him out of the club's starting lineup with deadline addition Jose Caballero starting at shortstop in his stead."

Aaron Judge has been hampered by a flexor strain and began his recovery with a stint on the injured list before returning as a designated hitter. He started throwing to the bases from the outfield. Judge described the throwing as "checking a box" and said he is following the team's trainers. Manager Aaron Boone said Judge looked good throwing to second but provided no timetable for a return to full outfield duties, emphasizing a slow approach to avoid re-injury. Judge's bat remains valuable despite a .218/.386/.418 line (126 wRC+) since August 5. Giancarlo Stanton has played right field, and Jose Caballero started at shortstop instead of Anthony Volpe.

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