As the three-time MVP keeps making progress in his injury recovery, Aaron Boone all but confirmed a report indicating Aaron Judge’s return timeline for the 2026 MLB season. However, the New York Yankees manager explained why team doctors have yet to clear Judge, painting a clear picture of the confusion in the Bronx.
In the meantime, Judge hopes to bypass a rehab assignment and make his first game back with the Yankees rather than with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders. Asked whether Judge will be sent on a rehab assignment in Triple-A, Boone couldn’t confirm or deny anything. Judge will have to wait to learn what his future in the 2026 MLB season will bring.
“I don’t know all the history of rehab assignments. I don’t think [Judge] did it in 2023 when he missed a couple of months. I remember Trea Turner and J.T. Realmuto missing a ton of time and they didn’t go on rehab [assignment] because you’re able to replicate a lot of things now. So I don’t know, we’ll cross that bridge when we get there,” Boone admitted about the Yankees’ stance on Judge’s rehab dilemma on the Talkin’ Yanks podcast.
What Boone’s statement means for Judge
Boone’s comment should be encouraging for Judge, as the Yankees’ manager is at least giving thought to having him jump right back into the lineup off the 60-day injured list (IL). At the end of the day, Judge is already spending more time with the Yankees and joined the rest of the clubhouse on the road trip to the West Coast.
Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees.
New York got off to a concerning start on its road trip, falling 10-1 to the Los Angeles Angels in the series opener in Anaheim. Perhaps such a loss told Boone and the Pinstripers that they need Judge as soon as possible, and the idea of him skipping what would still be a very short minor-league rehab assignment in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre may not be as daunting.
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Still, Boone couldn’t bring himself to commit to a final decision. Much like he couldn’t confirm whether Judge will return during New York’s upcoming six-game homestand, the Bronx Bombers’ manager left the door open for anything regarding Judge and a potential rehab assignment in the minors. It’s not like Judge will hate Boone and New York’s medical staff if they make that call, either.
Rehab assignment may not be necessary
Like Boone admitted himself, there may not be a glaring need for Judge to undergo a rehab assignment. In today’s MLB, injured players can get used to baseball activities and emulate real-game situations through pregame drills and activities in the cages. There may not be a need to risk a player by having him play in the minor leagues. Judge could get that grace.
Bellinger had to go through rehab assignment
However, the Yankees did send Cody Bellinger to their Triple-A affiliate as he returned from a Grade 2 left hamstring strain. It may be telling of the way the Pinstripers like to be extra cautious with their star players. But it may also be different with Judge, whose injury is in a completely different area of his body, with a much different timeline, and at a different point in the 2026 MLB season.
Even between players who suffer the same injury, no two setbacks are the same. Thus, those going off what New York did with Bellinger and making assumptions about Judge may only be misleading themselves.
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