Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge had a challenging season in 2023, suffering a torn toe ligament when he collided with the outfield wall at Dodger Stadium. Back in December, general manager Brian Cashman described it as “a resolved issue” but Judge spoke on it today and didn’t frame it with the same sort of finality. He said it will likely require “constant maintenance” for the rest of his career, per Gary Phillips of the New York Daily News.
Judge still said that he’s feeling good, so it doesn’t appear there’s real cause for concern in the immediate future. Nonetheless, it’s something that could be worth watching going forward. Judge is turning 32 years old in April and it slated to become an everyday center fielder this year, with Juan Soto and Alex Verdugo in the corners. Judge may get the occasional day as the designated hitter, with Trent Grisham taking over in center, but it still figures to be a notable jump in terms of work.
In 2022, Judge got into 78 games as a center fielder and logged 632 2/3 innings at the position, with both of those currently standing as his career highs. Assuming he avoids the injured list this year, he should easily blow past both figures. His career marks have been passable at the position, especially considering his minimal experience there, with three Outs Above Average, -1 Defensive Runs Saved and a grade of -0.4 from Ultimate Zone Rating.
Maintaining those average-ish marks over a larger sample of playing time will something of a challenge. He’ll also be doing so while trying to work against the natural aging curve that generally comes for players as they push towards their mid-30s and trying to keep the toe thing at bay. It’s a lot of minor things but they could perhaps add up over time, with Judge having eight years left on his contract. Last season’s results were nothing to worry about, however. After coming off the IL in late July, Judge hit .245/.408/.557 over the remainder of the season for a wRC+ of 164.
Elsewhere in Yankee news, right-hander Clay Holmes tells Joel Sherman of The New York Post that the club has not yet approached him about an extension. Holmes, 31 next month, is slated to become a free agent at the end of this year.
Over the past two years, Holmes has established himself as the club’s primary closer, racking up 44 saves over those two campaigns. He’s thrown 126 2/3 innings in that time, allowing 2.70 earned runs per nine. He has struck out 26.1% of batters faced and given out walks at an 8.2% clip while, most impressively, keeping 70.6% of balls in play on the ground. That’s the best grounder rate in the majors among pitchers with at least 120 innings pitched over the last two years.
Keeping that kind of production around beyond the upcoming season is surely appealing, especially for a Yankee club that is known to favor ground ball specialists. But since he’s so close to the open market, the Yanks would likely have to pay something close to free agent prices in order to get him to sign.
Perhaps the club feels they can find the next Holmes another way. As Sherman points out, Holmes didn’t have a huge track record at the time the Yankees acquired him. He had a 5.57 career ERA when the Yanks sent Hoy Park and Diego Castillo to the Pirates to get Holmes, before turning him into a lockdown closer.
But as Sherman also points out, the bullpen is on the cusp of major turnover. Each of Holmes, Jonathan Loáisiga, Tommy Kahnle and Caleb Ferguson are impending free agents. Those four are arguably the club’s top high-leverage guys, leaving a lot of uncertainty going into 2025 and beyond. Bullpens can be fungible and it’s entirely possible the picture is drastically changed by next winter, but there’s a decent chance the Yanks will need to go get someone in free agency.
The club’s payroll will likely be a topic of conversation next winter, as they will likely find themselves paying the competitive balance tax yet again. Roster Resource calculates next year’s CBT number as $190MM, even before factoring in arbitration raises for players like Grisham, Nestor Cortes or Jose Trevino. There’s also Anthony Rizzo’s $17MM club option to consider, with a $6MM buyout making it a net $11MM decision.
Next year’s base threshold will be $241MM while the Yanks will be looking to replace impending free agents like Soto and Verdugo in their outfield mix. Perhaps they would prefer to keep their powder dry for those pursuits instead of spending on their bullpen ahead of time.
He’s such a good right fielder and has a howitzer for an arm. I don’t like the move. Injuries are part of the game. CF is for youngsters.
Seems strange to put him in center full time if they knew he had this lingering foot issue.
I get the desire to add Soto to the lineup, but given this news on Judge, a better off-season plan might have been to add either Kevin Kiermaier or Michael A. Taylor to play center and have Soto and Judge handle the corners. Verdugo feels like a mistake, at least from a roster fit point of view.
So-so is a rental anyway
Verdugo feels like Cashman thinking he is pulling one over on the Red Sox. By mid-may and Verdugo isn’t running out grounders the joke will be on him
Red Sox fans shouldn’t laugh at anything with their team.
Grisham is perfectly fine in CF for 162… just rather unfortunate you can’t DH for him.
It’s not just about his foot issues as well. Yankee Stadium is one of the tougher places to play CF. There is a lot of ground to track down balls.
Yes. He’s an Average CF at best. And at 32 he’s definitely not 25 yo. He’s toe is junk and playing CF will likely put him in the DL and if he flies out for the season they will be paying both him and Stanton not to hit. Only problem is Stanton will be playing and not hitting lmao
Would rather have a 21 year old Mike Trout.
We can build him. We have the technology.
They’re just asking Judge to hurt himself again. Ridiculous to keep in the OF, let alone CF.
Finally a reporter with the ball$ to state the obvious- AJ is an average-ish CF and at 32yo avoiding the DL is going to be a mission.
Yeah, they would definitely be better off having him at first base, because not only would it be better for his health, they also wouldn’t have someone washed up at first base, because washed up is what Rizzo and LeMahieu are.
Neither can hit anymore. Rizzo maybe over DJ. Rizzo might hit .249 with 20-30 HR if he’s healthy and plays 140 games. But they needed Chapman. And a left CF. If george was alive Trout or AJ would be playing 1B. And he never would have picked up Stanton. He also has a lot to prove. A .237 25HR season would be amazing lol
It’s better defensively to have a lefty on first. Judge should be getting more DH time not 1 day a week. With the Marlins kicking in $10m a year for the final years of Stanton’s contract they should be shopping him. They will have to pay down more but it won’t be near as bad with the Marlins money. Stanton is the glaring problem with this roster. A good GM woukd admit his mistake and move on. Not Cashman, he will keep waiting for that rebound year that will never come. Hal should have fired him the second the Rodon contract was announced. He didn’t even insist on any health incentives being included. The times have passed Cashman by and the team needs new blood. He is a perfect GM for a mud market team but that Yankee checkbook gets him in trouble.
They have 11enty dhs already. where else is he gonna play ?
Yankees are in serious trouble- finally a sports writer with the courage to write (with proof on numbers) the fact that AJ is an average-ish center fielder. He should not be playing center. The Yankees should have made a play to sign a legit hitting CF and kept AJ in right with 1/2 days off as DH with vertigo and Grisham playing the corner for him. AJ has no business in CF and injury avoidance for a 32 yo is going to be a mission. Yankees are in trouble/ if they sign Snell they will likely get the non CY snell as that’s the more consistent Snell. The CY snell is not the norm form from him.
Yeah its rather strange for the team not to realize that keeping his bat in the lineup is the most important thing and everything else should be a mix and match sort of thing to find the appropriate balance in the field.
Do you hate everything? And did you really make 4 sock puppets to like your comments?
I wish the Yankees were run a bit more like the Rays/Astros/Dodgers.
It’s time to unload Stanton. Once Dominez gets back he deserves to stay in the Bronx. Judge, Rizzo, DJ and Soto can all DH to stay healthy all year
Dominguez has had 31 ABs. He does not “deserve” to be in the Bronx. The hype is beyond absurd.
The only way for them to unload Stanton is to eat the salary and release him. He’s guaranteed $98M. That’s a lot to eat; could give the Yankees indigestion.
How is Dominguez behind Ohtani in rehab ?? Didn’t he have the surgery 1st? Hmmmmm what are they injecting Ohtani with?!?!
Ohtani had his surgery on Sept 19th, Dominguez on Sept 20th.
Ohtani is hitting this week, Dominguez is starting that next week.
They are on almost identical timelines and any small variance can be chalked up to the fact that every body is a little different and some folks heal a little slower or faster due to numerous factors.
Pretty sure there is no tinfoil hat stuff going on here.
You just named three organizations that are run completely differently.
But I think you mean, not run by Cashman.
You mean the guy who has the most wins ever the past 10 years as a GM?
The guy who hasn’t won a World Series Title since 2009, that guy. 2014- 2009 = 15 years.
Tony L was a great coach. Pete Carroll too. What they did in the past has little bearing on the present.
A 32-year-old who’s 6’7” and heavy framed manning center field. What could possibly go wrong?
Nothing that hasn’t before. This time. Most likely.
It’s a valid point, but coincidentally, if he had been playing in CF, he would’ve avoided the aforementioned injury.
For clarity, I don’t like him playing CF either though.
@yc
yo hope your doing good buddy and gl this season
now with the pleasantries outta thaw way i have to ask you something. did nyy fo decided to have lobotomies for xmas bonuses? i don’t understand the thinking here, even if judge was a god defensively in cf why would you put a 30+ yo that is a big cog in your offense (the year he won mvp imo was the only reason nyy made it to oct that year, he literally dragged you guys across that line). i see this being a disaster not because he can’t play serviceable cf but all the nagging pains that come with being in your 30’s then add in the demands of cf, if he doesn’t end up on the dl he might wish he did just for the rest or even worse he is so spent there is nothing left down the stretch.
imo they either should of dfa stanton (he’s been mostly absent the few years and been paying like we was dfa’ed) and have him dh or put him at first. then go get a guy who can play solid d in cf and an avg bat which are easier to find than top 10 offensive player.
I like the fact that judge wants to play in the of, but how many years is it going to take away from him not just focusing on being that bat you need 150+ games in that lineup. You pay Stanton to dh. He’s questionably doing that for you at this point. Take his production in right. Fill when he goes down and keep judge healthy. Oh yeah and boones gotta go too.
He will have some sort of arthritis in that toe…no different that waht folks get in their hands or ankles that have been broken….
I really don’t understand risking Judge in center
When you’re paid a lot of money to scratch you head and do stupid things then you scratch your head and do stupid things, I guess.
A 280 pound 32 year old with feet issues in center field hmmm…
Had the Yankees made Stanton a 1B years ago this could have solved some of this (probably not). It was a move that should have happened during the Voit years.
Judge will need to be to be in CF for 7-8 innings per game. Grisham replaces Verdugo and Judge goes to RF, or Grisham replaces Soto if he isn’t coming up in the 9th to hit. And then once Stanton gets injured they can use the DH spot for Soto, Judge and others.
Grisham’s Law–Bad contracts chase good contracts out of the infield where they belong
If someone can explain Yankee front office strategy…..I’d be happy to listen
It’s what we call: Too many cooks in the kitchen.
A front office so deep in it’s analytical spread sheets that to make it simple, they just broke the roster down into “infielders” and “outfielders” and as long as they have x number of infielders and y number of outfielders they are good. Positions don’t matter on paper.
Maybe they could combine the pitcher and catcher positions into “battery players”, and just use them interchangeably. It would be a super cheap way to replenish their bullpen next year by just signing a bunch of back up catchers.
Clipper, I would amend that, too, too many incompetent cooks in the kitchen
if Naked Lunch and an Escher painting had a baby it would be the yankees’ front office strategy (i.e. dizzyingly non-sensical)
Haha. now, I can’t get that image out of my mind.
In The Show he lets a few balls get behind him to the fence but he also hits 139 HRs so you have to give a little to get a little.
Surely the article’s assumption is wrong. Surely they plan to play Grisham everyday in CF with Judge in RF, Verdugo in LF, and Soto serving as the primary DH. They can use Stanton to rest Verdugo and play match ups at DH. That’s the only plan that makes any sense.
I assume Cashman’s press conference where he was a little bit critical of Stanton was a way of breaking in the idea of a bench role for him.
You could even give Judge some time at 1B against lefties and use Stanton in RF. There has to be a better plan than playing Judge everyday in center.
Problem of Judge playing 1B is that they already have a 1B. The problem of Grisham playing CF everyday is that he can’t hit the ball for his life. They didn’t suggest your idea because there’s basically no clear answer on what the yankees will actually do with this complete mess of a situation. this would’ve never happened if they never got stanton!!!!!
Rizzo hits from the left side, so they could play Judge at 1B against lefties. It gives the platoon advantage and manages Rizzo’s workload.
Rizzo only has this year guaranteed, and if his production dipped due to a concussion after the Tatis slide, there’s no guarantee he’ll return to the same player. He’s shown signs of slowing down since 2020, performing just 11% above league average, and he’s not getting any younger. At first base and DH, you need someone who can hit. Having Rizzo start when your ground-ball pitchers are on the hill might be wise, but there’s no “right” answer. Just plugging Judge in CF four days a week and keeping Stanton & Rizzo in if they’re not productive doesn’t seem like a good way to win.
With Dominguez possibly coming back midway through the year, having Judge rotate between 1B and/or DH, depending on which of Rizzo/Stanton (who since 2020 has been moderately better with the bat at 16% above average) underperform, you’d at least have plus defense at CF with Grisham, and Judge would be the emergency CF’er, not penciled in there as the everyday guy. That’s no way to keep his head, shoulders, knees, and toes (knees & toes) healthy.
In my opinion, to win with this teams pitching as currently constructed (lackluster outside of Cole), you need offense at 1B/DH, and having Judge there in theory would keep him healthier than playing CF. With two other CF-capable players in Grish & Jasson, managing the roster based on the performance of aging players becomes feasible. I’d rather have a .200 hitter who can pick it there 4-5 days a week and Judge playing 150+ games than him watching, banged up.
Cashman has said more than once that Judge will play CF after the Soto trade. At least until Dominguez is ready again to take the field. There is no way Soto will be relegated to DH during his walk year as the Yankees will make attempts to resign him.
Judge has never played 1B even in the minors. What makes you think he can suddenly be able to play the position?
Judge is a good athlete. Other guys have learned 1B on the fly. Bryce Harper is similarly a good athlete and he was able to pick it up. Remember Scott Hatteburg? He was not close to Judge’s equal athletically and he was able to make it work. Also, Judge is 6′ 7″. His size will allow him to make some plays other guys can’t.
I actually think keeping Soto at DH increases their ability to keep him. He shows no interest in playing defense anyway. He would probably appreciate the switch.
We could burn that contract… is there an Arson in the house?
Grisham must be a very good defensive outfielder because batting ,190 over 900 at-bats is hilariously deplorable.
as bad as. 190 looks he’s got a little pop and takes a lot of walks. if he hits even .220 he’s near league avg, and yes, his defense is gg caliber in cf
If not this season, before next season, Yankees need to offload Stanton. He’s hurt this team so much during his tenure. Maybe a bad contract for bad contract deal with the Angels. Rendon for Stanton, at least 3b will be a spot of need. Frees up DJ to move to 1b after Rizzo leaves, frees up dh for Judge, and moves Grisham into center full time. I’ll bet Trent will do better offensively overall (except power) than Giancarlo at this point. And even if not, he’s a plus defender.
Anyway, that’s for another time and not even the best solution, so let’s just hope Judge doesn’t hurt himself out there is all we can do for now.
Rendon for Stanton would be a bad deal. Stanton works hard to try to stay on the field and is a good teammate. Who knows what’s going inside Rendon’s head and whether he’s motivated to play? There is also Marlins money to help pay for Stanton’s contract.
Rizzo has a ’25 $17MM option with a $6MM buyout. If Rizzo has a good year, $11MM for an above average 1B is a good value. You’re also forgetting about Jasson Dominguez.
Please do not sing the praises of Stanton as a good teammate. He’s not a cancer, but he’s been an albatross almost all the way around for this team just by being here.
And I’m sorry, but we need to move away from Rizzo, too. And it’ll be 17 million if we kept him, not 11, not that I care about the money. Even if he has a decent year I’d rather move on.
3rd base has virtually no good options next offseason and nobody knows what’s in anyone’s head. I’m sure outside fans say the same about Stanton. I’d surely be willing to find out how motivated Rendon would be in NY with a better chance at winning.
Let’s see Dominguez come back healthy first before we anoint anything there, too. I like the kid, but one step at a time.
Stanton hit 40 homeruns this year and every Yankees fan shut up.
Rizzo gets 6 mil buyout next year from the Yankees at a minimum.
For 11mil more, the get to keep him.
An above average defense at first with decent pop and gets on base for 11mil is a steal.
Or you can try and get Alonso for 35 mil a year+
Please Mr. Stanton absolutely shut me up. I deserve it after having to suffer through your reign.
For one year, maybe? But what’s the bigger picture there? Because it needs to be addressed and Rizzo isn’t getting younger. Last year was lost and honestly he had some terrible stretches in 2022.
Nothing would make me happier than seeing aĺ of these guys healthy and raking, but it just hasn’t been there the last few years.
YBC, Stanton is owed $128M in guaranteed money. The Marlins are on the hook for $30M for Stanton, so the Yankees’ share is $98M
Many torn ligaments hurt for a long time off and on before they basically heal but some never do. It is likely able to be healed but a toe is hard to stretch/exercise. He really doesn’t know and is surely going by doctors input. It is likely gonna bother him for at least a few years occasionally (probably needing a week off here and there.
The solution is obviously to sign Bellinger
For someone who trumpets a “178iq”, you seem to also have an innate ability to miss the point. Just because he starts opening day in CF doesn’t mean he will play 150 games there. Or even 120. He’ll also DH and play RF. So, his legs should stay fresh all season. Everything today is plug n play.
It’s like every idiot Yankees fan who thinks they will lose 100 games signed up for an account on this site.
Really don’t see why they aren’t putting Grisham in CF and judge in RF regularly. Good for judge if he can do it, but is it the right move for his career? I don’t think Verdugo is good enough to justify this train of thought.
I agree. And maybe a Soto, Grisham, Judge OF won’t hit as well as a Soto, Judge, Verdugo one, but they’ll play better defense.
WIth the Yankees training staff past record the whole Judge Toe saga never seemed to have a definative conclusion to it. I don’t think they ever elaborated anymore than he underwent some sort of treatment. if I am wrong in that I apologize. With Judges comments contradicting did they fumble the ball again here and should he have had surgery? Him playing Center Field is just a receipt for disaster. I’m hoping for the best but even best case scenario if Dominquez comes back at all star break and can hit the ground running it still means Judge in CF for half a year. I just don’t see how he can play that position that long with a not 100% toe.
Why is Dominguez so far behind Ohtani? That’s the question. He has the surgery first! Dom is throwing. Ohtani is crushing BP. AJ will be out for the season by may. And the Yankees will finish 70-92.
Let Holmes earn his free agency. Put up or shut up.