Aaron Judge could only watch. The Yankees captain stood still in his dugout hoodie and pristine uniform as he witnessed another late-game breakdown unfold before him on the field. On the side of the diamond stood the Tampa Bay Rays, rejoicing not much in victory but in witnessing the unravelment of their opponents. A stunned Bronx crowd sat in silence, watching a season hang in the balance. The Yankees weren’t just losing, they were being exposed.
That unraveling wasn’t just noticed by fans. It drew fire from one of the most respected voices in New York baseball. Jon Heyman, speaking on The Show alongside Joel Sherman, didn’t sugarcoat the situation. “They don’t look like a championship team now,” he said flatly. Coming from Heyman, a longtime insider known for balance more than bombast, that line hit differently. It wasn’t a hot take. It was a diagnosis.
Heyman elaborated, outlining a path that felt more patchwork than promising:
“They need bullpen… They need a lefty, and I think they need another big arm, big right-handed arm, near the back of that pen, because it does seem that they’ve been short.”
He continued, “Now, I know that Cruz, Leiter are working their way back. They may help, but I wouldn’t count on that… That said, they don’t look like a championship team now.”
It’s a harsh truth the Yankees can’t ignore. Their recent play hasn’t resembled anything close to October baseball. Blown leads, flat energy, and bullpen fatigue have turned the once-promising rotation into a guessing game. While Devin Williams and Luke Weaver have held things together in spurts, cracks are showing. The kind that no deadline rental can fully seal.
Heyman also shot down any hope of a blockbuster fix. He doubts high-end arms like MacKenzie Gore or Joe Ryan will be moved, noting that the Yankees will likely settle for depth instead of dominance. And if fans think a miracle is coming? Think again, Heyman made it clear Spencer Jones and George Lombard Jr. are off the table.
Meanwhile, Aaron Judge sits on the sidelines anxiously awaiting his return to the field while shouldering the weight of being the team’s savior in a time of need. A task that may prove too much to handle at this point. With 60 games remaining and their momentum dwindling rapidly, the Yankees appear to be losing their grip on contention and are veering towards a path of disillusionment, even causing doubts among seasoned insiders who once held them in regard.
A frightening Friday: Yankees feared the worst for Aaron Judge
The tension in the Yankees’ front office wasn’t just about losing games; it was about possibly losing everything. On Friday night, team executives reportedly went to bed believing that Aaron Judge, the cornerstone of their roster and face of the franchise, might need Tommy John surgery. That fear wasn’t just speculation; it was serious enough that, according to SNY’s Andy Martino, the Yankees were genuinely weighing a complete pivot at the trade deadline. The kind of pivot that would see them selling off pieces, not adding for a postseason push.
“You lose Judge after already losing Gerrit Cole, maybe just reload,” Martino said on The Bret Boone Podcast. “Trade some free agents to be.” The idea sounds unthinkable in the Bronx, but with Judge out and the team floundering through a brutal July, the possibility became real, if only for a moment. Fortunately for the Yankees, further evaluation revealed the injury was not to his UCL but to his flexor tendon. That diagnosis was met with relief at first.
Then came the plot twist. Injury expert Will Carroll threw cold water on that optimism during an appearance on Foul Territory. “This is worse than a UCL tear,” Carroll said bluntly. That’s not hyperbole; he cited Bryce Harper, who ruptured his UCL, kept hitting, and didn’t miss significant time. Judge’s injury, Carroll warned, targets the flexor tendon, a small but crucial connector that controls grip, bat rotation, and fine adjustments at the plate. “This doesn’t heal quickly,” he explained. “It often takes a month or more to heal up.” While the Yankees mentioned the possibility of putting Judge on the 10-day injured list, Carroll expressed uncertainty by hinting that Aaron Judge’s return might be delayed until September.
So the Yankees could face a period without their key player, even if they don’t opt for surgery, and heading into the trade deadline without any definite solutions in sight.
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