Aaron Judge Hits the IL with a Calf Strain Just in Time for the Playoff Push

The New York Yankees are officially putting Aaron Judge on the injured list with a calf strain, because apparently, the baseball gods decided the American League playoff race was getting a little too comfortable.

MLB Trade Rumors dropped the news Friday night that the Yankees captain is heading back to the shelf. Judge originally left Wednesday's game against the Minnesota Twins with what the team called right lower leg tightness. Now, that tightness has graduated to a full-blown calf strain, leaving New York without their primary offensive engine just weeks before October.

"MLB Trade Rumors reported: 'Yankees To Place Aaron Judge On IL With Calf Strain'"

If you want to know what a Judge-less Yankees lineup looks like, you do not have to look far back in the archives. He already missed three months this season with a right rib stress fracture. During that stretch, the Yankees managed to tread water with a 45-39 record, but the offense was borderline unwatchable. From June 1 through early September, New York ranked 26th in the Majors in runs scored.

Taking Judge out of this lineup is like taking the engine out of a Ferrari and replacing it with a lawnmower motor. Sure, it still has the shiny pinstriped paint job, but it is not winning any races. The timing is brutal for a team already missing guys like Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Trent Grisham to their own injuries.

Anyone holding Yankees futures tickets is probably staring blankly at a wall right now. When Judge is healthy, New York is a legitimate World Series threat. When he is in the dugout wearing a hoodie, they are a coin-flip against average pitching.

The Yankees now head to the desert for a weekend series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. They will have to figure out how to manufacture runs while waiting for an official recovery timeline on their franchise cornerstone. If this calf strain lingers into the postseason, the Bronx might be in for a very short, very quiet October.