Aaron Judge (calf) to work out on field

Judge continues to work his way back from a calf strain that has shelved him since September 16. While he wasn’t ready for the start of the ALDS, there’s growing optimism that he could be ready to go for the ALCS should the Yankees advance past the Rays.

It sounds like the Yankees weighed carrying Judge even though he wouldn’t start at the beginning of the series, but they decided against it. Judge has been sidelined since Sept. 16 by a calf strain.

Boone added that the determination to leave Judge off the club’s AL Wild Card Series roster was made after meeting with trainers following a live batting practice session at Yankee Stadium on Monday. The 34-year-old franchise cornerstone told reporters last week that he was planning to be ready for the start of the postseason, but that always felt a bit unrealistic after he suffered a calf strain back on September 16. It sounds like there’s a decent chance that Judge returns for the AL Division Series, if New York manages to get past the Red Sox. There should be some additional clarity on his next steps later this week.

Despite Judge claiming that he was intending to play, it always seemed like a long shot. The 34-year-old has a calf strain that was expected to sideline him for 2-6 weeks, and he had not done any running in the days leading up to the announcement. Judge will continue to rehab and almost assuredly will be on the Yankees roster for the Divisional series, if they can get there.

He struck out against Ryan Weathers. Judge didn’t do any running during the live BP or afterwards. It seems like it would be quite the roll of the dice to put him on the Wild Card roster 13 days after he suffered a calf strain.

This is obviously good news, but the bigger hurdle for Judge with a calf strain will be running. Especially the stop-start running when he leaves the batter’s box or takes off after being on base. He also claims that he intends to play the outfield, which will be another major test for his calf. As of now, Boone says that the team has not made a decision about whether or not to carry Judge on their roster for the Wild Card series against the Red Sox.

The declaration comes just a few days after Judge was placed on the injured list with a right calf strain last weekend. It’s a notable statement considering Yankees manager Aaron Boone said earlier on Wednesday that he does not expect to have Judge available for the Wild Card Series without ruling him out entirely. The 34-year-old franchise cornerstone’s status for next week’s Wild Card Series, which is a near-lock to be against the division-rival Red Sox, will be the biggest storyline in baseball leading into the postseason. It goes without saying that Judge will probably be on New York’s roster as a DH option for the three-game series, but it’s fair to question how ready he’ll be from a physical standpoint.

Boone clarified that the team wouldn’t rule out the possibility that Judge plays, but he did mention that Judge got a PPP injection for his calf and will have no activity for the next few days after the injection. Boone confirmed that Judge has a “moderate” strain in the calf, but also said that the designation doesn’t matter. If Judge feels that he is able to play, then he will play. We may not know his availability for a Wild Card series until right before the series starts.

And when might he play again? “I’d like to be back by the postseason,” he said. “That’s definitely the plan. I got really no answers for you on any timeline or anything like that.” Good luck trying to figure out exactly what that means. Judge will be eligible to come off the 10-day injured list on the final day of the regular season.

Judge will be eligible to return for the final game of the regular season next Sunday, but it remains unclear if he’ll be ready to return at that time. The Yankees’ priority will be to get him ready to go for the start of the postseason.