Aaron Boone just announced that the Yankees are activating Aaron Judge ahead of tonight’s game against the Blue Jays.
Prior to tonight’s game, the @Yankees reinstated OF Aaron Judge from the 10-day disabled list.
— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) September 14, 2018
However, he will be placed on the bench and is not cleared to hit in a live game situation yet. He will be available for defense and pinch running. Pinch hitting is likely not an option at this point. The plan remains to get Judge some simulated at-bats in some capacity before facing live pitching
Boone says that Judge is “probably not” available to pinch-hit. They’ll get him simulated at-bats somehow before he gets into a MLB game.
— Bryan Hoch (@BryanHoch) September 14, 2018
Judge was originally supposed to be out three weeks, but that turned into about two months as he was battling a broken wrist. He just started taking live batting practice a couple days ago.
The progression has been slow, but this is a great sign, as it likely means that Judge will be back to hitting in games before the playoffs begin. He is set to start his simulated at-bats within the next few days.