Aaron Judge injury update: Aaron Boone reveals surprising news on Yankees star

Hours after it was revealed that Yankees star outfielder Aaron Judge would not be in New York’s lineup on Saturday against the Philadelphia Phillies with an elbow “issue,” manager Aaron Boone has announced that Judge has been placed on the injured list due to a flexor strain in his right elbow.

Saturday’s game was just Judge’s second missed outing of the season, with more to come. Due to the injury, Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh has surpassed Judge as the odds-on favorite to win American League MVP on multiple SportsBooks.

Yankees manager Aaron Boone announces Aaron Judge has a flexor strain in his right elbow and will be placed on the IL. pic.twitter.com/UupLQsDSjy

— MLB (@MLB) July 26, 2025

The pain in his elbow began this past Tuesday against the AL East-leading Toronto Blue Jays. This led to him being labeled as designated hitter for the next game, though Boone said he was scheduled for the DH appearance. The Yankees were off on Thursday before Judge and company returned to the field for Friday’s series opener against the Phillies. 

“He couldn’t really get the ball in very well,” Boone said, via ESPN. “So, [we] felt like we wanted to have him down and get the imaging, get our hands around just what exactly we’re dealing with.”

Judge finished Friday’s opener having gone 0-3 at the plate with a strikeout, which is certainly an uncharacteristically quiet performance from the AL MVP frontrunner. He’s currently batting .342 with a 1.160 OPS — both top in the MLB. His 37 home runs are tied for second, as well as his 85 RBIs. 

Judge’s injury comes at pivotal point of season for Yankees

Already a two-time league MVP, losing Judge at this point in the season ahead of the trade deadline is a massive blow for the Yankees. New York is currently sitting at 56-47 on the season — 5.5 games back from the Blue Jays for the top spot in the AL East. The Yankees currently hold the top spot in the Wild Card race by two games.

If Judge is forced to miss extended time, or worse, it changes to outlook of the season for the Yankees. They do have some insurance given Giancarlo Stanton returned from injury last month. Paul Goldschmidt and Cody Bellinger have been consistent pieces to New York’s lineup this season as well. Both are healthy and having strong seasons. 

“The things I want is, ‘What do we have here?” Boone said. “Then what’s the course of action? I don’t want to get too far ahead of myself with that. Hopefully, it’s something manageable and we get through it.”

On3’s Barkley Truax contributed to this report.