New York Yankees fans are feeling plenty of anxiety at the moment as Aaron Judge is seeing a specialist today to get an opinion on a bone bruise in his upper right rib. Judge did not play in the Yankees’ 9-4 loss to the Guardians last night at Yankee Stadium.
Below, we will gather all of the current information on Judge’s injury, and also look at whether news of the injury has impacted his American League MVP odds.
Aaron Judge Injury Update: How long will Yankees slugger be out for?
Yankees manager Aaron Boone said that Judge has been dealing with soreness in his right shoulder for the last couple of weeks, but it became more of an issue during the Yankees’ series this past weekend against the Athletics.
“The last couple games in Sacramento, I think it became a little more than that, where I noticed it with some swings and stuff,” Boone said. “I think it was affecting him … Hopefully it is something that we just get calmed down here and put it behind us.”
Judge has battled a rib injury in the past, as doctors found a stress fracture in his right first rib and a partially collapsed lung in March of 2020. The season was postponed until July of that year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, so there’s no telling how much time Judge would have missed due to that injury.
A mild bruised rib typically takes just 2-3 weeks to recover from. If it turns out to be a stress fracture, however, Judge could be out for over two months.
Most indications are that this injury is more on the mild side, but, then again, there is a reason why Judge is seeing a specialist today.
Aaron Judge odds
Judge remains the betting favorite to win American League MVP at Fanatics Sportsbook despite the news of the injury. The Yankees slugger is currently priced at +110. Kansas City’s Bobby Witt is second on the AL MVP odds board at +280, and Yordan Alvarez is third at +310.
Judge has belted 17 home runs so far this season, which is good for fourth in Major League Baseball. Only Philly’s Kyle Schwarber (22 home runs), Alvarez (21), and the White Sox’s Munetaka Murakami (20) have more. Judge has the ninth-most RBI in the American League this season with 38.
The 34-year-old Judge won AL MVP last season as he led the league in batting average at .331, and also bashed 53 home runs. Judge’s batting average is not yet up to his standards this season as he is hitting .248.
Judge has won AL MVP three times in his career (2022, 2024, 2025).
Yankees odds
The Yankees’ World Series odds have not been impacted by the news of Judge’s injury either. New York remains +425 at Fanatics to win baseball’s ultimate prize. The Yankees currently trail the Rays in the AL East standings, but Boone’s club is the favorite to win the division at -285.
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