The New York Yankees would obviously love to have Aaron Judge available for the postseason. Judge is not on the Yankees' American League Wild Card Series roster as he deals with a calf injury, but he could return for the ALDS if New York defeats the Boston Red Sox. MLB analyst Mark DeRosa revealed the potential upside of Judge missing the series during an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show. It is worth mentioning that Giancarlo Stanton is on the roster, so having Judge be the designated hitter would have been a challenge given Stanton's presence.
“It's a huge deal just because you can make the argument he (Judge) is the best hitter in the sport,” DeRosa said. “But he didn't look good when he first came back. It's his right calf. If he could've gone I think he would've forced the issue to be put on this roster. I actually think it makes (Aaron) Boone's job a little bit easier… If Judge was gonna be on the roster, you were gonna want him in right field. You want (Paul) Goldschmidt in there against the lefty, you're not taking Ben Rice out, there's just not enough positions for these guys to kind of handle.
Article Continues Below“So, I think it makes Boone's job a little bit easier… If I'm Boone right now, he's trying to steal this series and get Judge off his feet for four days and then bring him back hopefully against the Rays, and he's healthy and can play a little bit of right field for them.”
Game 1 of the Red Sox and Yankees series in New York is scheduled for 8 PM ET on Tuesday night.