The New York Yankees will enter the postseason having finished the regular season with the second-best record in the American League. The club scored the second-most runs in the league, hit the most homers and posted the best ERA by more than a half run, and will be favored at home in the wild-card series against the Boston Red Sox.
Despite those numbers, a string of roster questions remains unresolved. Manager Aaron Boone has repeatedly answered inquiries with “we’ll see,” a refrain noted during YES Network broadcasts, and many decisions will come down to the final hour: postseason rosters must be submitted next Tuesday morning.
Aaron Judge’s availability has drawn the most attention. Judge missed 84 games this season with a rib stress fracture and suffered a calf strain on Sept. 16. He told reporters in Arizona that he was dealing with a soleus muscle strain, and Boone on Tuesday called the injury a “moderate grade” strain and said the team is planning as if Judge will not be ready for the wild-card series, though he was not ruling it out. Judge told ESPN he still intended to be available and criticized Boone’s wording, saying “Everybody’s moderate is a little different.” Judge also said Boone is “my guy” and that he supports him.
Judge received a platelet-poor plasma injection Monday and has resumed physical activity, but as of Friday had not taken a swing since the strain. He has said he wants to play right field rather than only serve as a designated hitter. Carrying Judge primarily as a pinch-hitter could require the Yankees to carry one fewer pitcher; last year New York had 12 pitchers on its wild-card roster. Boone suggested this week the club might carry fewer pitchers than in the past, saying, “I see no scenario where we’re going to have 13 pitchers, maybe not even 12. We’ll see.”
Other position players are also working toward availability. Giancarlo Stanton (calf) and Trent Grisham (hamstring) have each been progressing, and Grisham likely could have been activated during the final week of the regular season, though that would have required the Yankees to designate a player for assignment. Those and other roster choices will be finalized as New York prepares for Game 1.
