New York Yankees Jon Heyman Yankees can’t cave to Aaron Judge — no matter how badly he wants to play By Jon Heyman Published Sep. 28, 2026, 8:11 p.m. ET New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge smiles as he walks into the batting cage to take batting practice at Yankees Stadium in The Bronx, New York, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. The practice comes a day before Game 1 of the 2026 American League Wild Card game against the Boston Red Sox. JASON SZENES FOR NEW YORK POST Three-time MVP and Yankees captain Aaron Judge made clear how badly he wants to play against the reviled Red Sox in Round 1. And it surely would be a great and maybe even historic story if he could beat all odds and make it back within two weeks of straining the soleus muscle in his right calf.
Judge desperately wants to be playing, maybe even more than the Yankees hope to activate him. But let’s be smart about this.
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Appearances suggest he might be halfway through the recovery process, if that. He took live batting practice for the first time Monday since the latest injury.
He also said he’s still using an anti-gravity machine to run.
