Yankees fans are desperately counting down the days Aaron Judge will be back in the lineup, but when that will be is anyone’s guess, including Aaron Boone.
The Yankees manager still had no timetable on Judge’s return from the IL aside from “he’s getting close.”
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“He’s doing pretty well,” Boone told the “Talkin’ Yanks” podcast on Tuesday. “The running progression he’s going through he is able to do a lot more than he was a week ago. I don’t have the date for you, I feel like it’s getting close.”
Judge was seen taking live batting practice and doing some light drills in the outfield during their weekend series at Coors Field, prompting fans to speculate a return could be closer than previously thought.
But Boone cautioned that Judge would still have to build up to being able to be on the injured toe for an extended period of time before returning to the lineup — which likely means simulated or rehab games before finally being cleared.
When he is cleared, it is also likely Judge will see more time at DH with Giancarlo Stanton getting more reps in the field.
“I would imagine when he comes back I’ll use the DH with him a decent amount,” Boone said. “Hopefully, that first week, two weeks [we] start to have him out there more as he gets better and better. It’s hard to answer right now. I expect when he comes back the DH will be in play a fair amount.”