Dr. Drew Burdi, a foot-and-ankle surgeon, warns that New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge risks severe injuries if he returns too soon from his moderate soleus muscle strain in his calf. The doctor explains that rushing back could worsen the injury to Judge’s hamstring or Achilles tendon, potentially leading to a longer recovery period and even an Achilles rupture, which can be career-changing. Despite Judge's desire to play in the Wild Card Series against the Boston Red Sox, he was not included in the roster due to the high risk of further injury.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-09-29,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Aaron Judge, captain of the New York Yankees, remains sidelined due to a moderate calf strain since September 16. Despite taking live batting practice and working out at the team's spring training facility in Tampa, Florida, he was excluded from the roster for the AL Division Series against the Tampa Bay Rays starting October 7. Dr. Drew Burdi warned that rushing back could exacerbate injuries to Judge’s hamstring or Achilles tendon. Manager Aaron Boone cited caution as key, stating Judge isn't quite ready yet but might be available later in potential series games at Yankee Stadium.
Written for “Aaron Judge Injury Uncertainty Yankees” on 2026-10-05,
grounded in this article and the 6 other(s) covering the same event.
Aaron Judge desperately tried to return for the postseason after straining his calf, but the New York Yankees captain was wisely left off the Wild Card series roster.
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captain → try → roster
Judge sustained a moderate soleus muscle strain in his calf and received a platelet-poor plasma (PPP) injection to try to speed up his rehab, but it wasn’t enough for him to make the roster for the team’s best-of-three series against the Boston Red Sox.
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him → sustain → Sox
Former college football quarterback-turned-foot-and-ankle surgeon Dr. Drew Burdi said if Judge came back too soon, he could leave himself exposed to further injury.
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he → turn → injury
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page → contain → partners
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News → sign → wager
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that → create → newsroom
"If you do go too fast, too soon, you could just make it a more severe injury.
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it → go → ?
It's a soleus, so that could lead to overstraining (the) hamstring, up and down.
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that → lead → hamstring
You could put more strain on your Achilles, you could put more strain on your hamstrings, and that could lead to other injuries," Burdi told OutKick in a recent interview.
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Burdi → put → interview
Burdi explained that strains involve varying degrees of muscle tearing and that a premature return to play could cause Judge’s strain to go from moderate to severe.
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strain → explain → severe
A more severe tear could lead to a much longer recovery time, regardless of the treatment used.
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tear → lead → treatment
"If you're not ready to go back in yet, you tear it more, you can get to a point where the advanced conservative therapies like PRP injections, shock wave therapy, these guys are getting oxygen chamber therapy.
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guys → go → therapy
This stuff can only go so far.
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stuff → go → ?
The body can only adapt so much, can only heal so quickly," Burdi said.
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Burdi → adapt → ?
The worst potential outcome of Judge returning too soon could be an Achilles rupture.
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Judge → return → ?
Burdi said such an injury is a possibility.
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injury → say → ?
"Possibly, yeah, I mean, that's always a risk.
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that → mean → ?
Again, it, it kind of depends how he feels, but it's always a risk, and Achilles is always so scary because a lot of people, you see it in football, guys are jumping up on the sidelines and they come down weird and they rupture their Achilles.
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they → depend → Achilles
You're just like, wow, they don't even feel it before it happens," Burdi said.
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Burdi → feel → it
"That's tough because those are tough injuries to come back from.
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those → come → ?
Guys do do it, but they're never quite the same."
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they → do → it
Burdi said that while Achilles injuries aren’t necessarily career killers, they are career changers.
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they → say → ?
So while the Yankees may have a Judgian-sized hole in their Wild Card Series lineup, leaving Judge off the roster could be the safer long-term approach.
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leaving → have → roster
Judge said he intended to try to play in Game 1, but the three-time American League MVP didn’t recover in time.
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MVP → say → time
While Judge might not have been hitting like himself in his seven games back from the rib injury that kept him out since June, going 4 for 23 with one home run and 13 strikeouts, his presence in the lineup was a boost.
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presence → hit → lineup
Even when the Yankees’ captain isn’t hitting, Judge’s presence in the lineup takes pressure off other hitters.
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presence → hit → hitters
In 66 games this season, Judge is hitting .241 with 18 home runs and 41 RBI.
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Judge → hit → runs
He hopes the Yankees can eliminate the rival Boston Red Sox in the Wild Card Series so he can rejoin the team in the ALDS.
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he → hop → ALDS
The Aporia
