As far back as August, Aaron Judge was experiencing shoulder problems. Today, the Yankees unexpectedly announced that Judge had surgery performed on Monday and is expected to be ready for Spring Training. Yankees fans can only hope it turns out that way.
The New York Yankees took to Twitter to announce that Aaron Judge was having arthroscopic surgery to repair a persistent problem with his left shoulder which arose during the second half of the season.
Update on OF Aaron Judge: pic.twitter.com/Sr0ockH1Pg
— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) November 21, 2017
All Yankees fans are aware of the downward spiral experienced by Aaron Judge following the All-Star Game in Miami. His troubles lasted until September, when he caught a second wind and was a significant factor in propelling his team to within one game of the World Series.
Judge, being Judge, insisted on playing through the injury and Joe Girardi, to his credit, allowed him to, leaving him in the lineup day after day. All of this occurred despite a rising crescendo in the press and among fans to let him rest the shoulder, and more importantly, to take a breath of fresh air to “clear his mind.”
Mike Axisa, for instance, writing for CBS Sports.com made a compelling argument that pointed to the shoulder injury as the direct reason for Aaron Judge’s two-month slide backward after a first half that boggled the mind.
Throughout it all, Judge showed his true colors by making it a point to not use the shoulder as a scapegoat.
Aaron Judge on his second-half slide: "You can't pout. You can't cry. You just gotta keep working & move on." pic.twitter.com/JyMKvJG7i0
— YES Network (@YESNetwork) August 20, 2017
But clearly, something was “off” with Aaron Judge in the second half, even with his otherworldly September stats.
Which is probably why the Yankees decided to move ahead with the surgery after the season. However, the team does leave itself open to criticism if there are any hiccups during the rehab process.
Why, for instance, if the Yankees knew surgery was on the horizon for Aaron Judge, was it not scheduled within a few days following season’s end, adding insurance time for a full recovery by Spring Training?
But to be fair, we’re dealing with Aaron Judge here as a player who can be trusted to do whatever it takes to keep in top shape and remain on the field, no matter what it requires. Give him six weeks, ten weeks, or no weeks, and he continues playing through it; it probably makes no difference.
All indications are the Yankees have themselves an exceptional talent and a person in Aaron Judge.
We’ll keep you up to date with how the rehab goes at Elite Sports NY, but all indications are that it’s all systems go, not only for Aaron Judge in the spring of 2018 but the entire Yankees team as well.
