Judge reveals he has torn ligament in toe
New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge said Saturday that he has a torn ligament in his right big toe and is experiencing pain when he walks.
When the Yankees placed Judge, 31, on the injured list June 6, the team said he was dealing with a contusion and a sprained ligament in his right big toe. There remains no timetable for the return of the reigning American League MVP.
“I’ve got to knock out the rehab stuff. I’ve had different injuries over the years where it’s going to take a while,” Judge said, per MLB.com. “It’s not going to be perfect here in a couple of weeks. Once we can manage the pain, we’re going to be in a good spot.”
Judge added: “I don’t think too many people in here have torn a ligament in their toe. If it was a quad, we’d have a better answer. If it’s an oblique or hamstring, we have answers and a timeline for that. With how unique this injury is, and it being my back foot, which I push off of and run off of, it’s a tough spot.”
Manager Aaron Boone said Saturday that he expects Judge to return this season but did not provide any guarantees.
Judge sustained the injury on June 3 after slamming his toe against the fence at Dodger Stadium while making a catch in the outfield.
Judge is hitting .291 with 19 home runs and 40 RBI in 49 games this season.
SATURDAY’S GAMES
Cubs 9, Cardinals 1: Ian Happ homered twice and Justin Steele struck out eight over six innings as Chicago defeated St. Louis in the opener of the two-game 2023 MLB London Series. It was the fourth straight win for the Cubs.
Happ went deep for the fifth and sixth times in his career against St. Louis veteran Adam Wainwright (3-2), and Dansby Swanson clubbed a late two-run homer for the Cubs, who’ve won nine of 10 and 11 in the past 13.
Christopher Morel, Yan Gomes and Nick Madrigal — the bottom three in Chicago’s order — combined for seven hits and an RBI apiece as the Cubs pounded out 14 hits.
ELSEWHERE
Rays: Tampa Bay shortstop Wander Franco, benched for two games, was expected to return to the lineup Saturday. Manager Kevin Cash plugged Franco in the No. 2 spot in the batting order against the visiting Kansas City Royals. Cash sat Franco on Thursday and Friday amid a series of incidents this year in which he’s shown a lack of hustle, maturity and ability to be a good teammate. The Rays, who have the best record in the major leagues, went 1-1 in Franco’s absence.