The 2019 Injury That Tells You Everything About Aaron Judge's Season

Holy cow, what a week! If you thought the Mariners dropping a tough one 7-1 to the New York Mets was a bitter pill last night, wait until you hear what's shaking up the rest of the league. Aaron Judge, one of baseball's biggest stars, is now sidelined with a stress fracture of his first right rib, and honestly, the news has been building for weeks. And as if that wasn't enough drama, we had a full-on, head-on collision at first base in Phoenix between the Dodgers and D-backs that looked absolutely wild.

Aaron Judge's Lingering Nightmare Comes Back To Haunt Him

This Judge news? It just hits different. The Yankees announced he's got a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side. He's on a strict regimen of rest and limited activity, with follow-up imaging in about four to six weeks to figure out the next steps. They're saying he's expected back "at some point this season," but man, that's a vague timeline for a player of his caliber. He's been feeling discomfort for "the past several weeks," which was initially thought to be just a bone bruise near his right rib cage. An MRI on Tuesday, directed by Dr. Gregory J. Pearl, a specialist in "thoracic outlet syndrome management," finally gave them the real diagnosis. Judge actually missed his first game of the season on Tuesday after reporting discomfort during their series against the Athletics in West Sacramento. His manager, Aaron Boone, said Judge has been managing right shoulder discomfort for "the last couple of weeks," but only feels it when swinging, and can't pinpoint when it started. The numbers have been screaming for a bit, too: since May 11, Judge is batting a paltry .206, with just one home run, eight RBIs, and 19 strikeouts over 68 at-bats. Overall, he's at .248/.375/.533 with 17 homers and 38 RBIs in 59 games. What's really telling, though, is this isn't his first rodeo with this exact issue. Back in 2019, he suffered a stress fracture of his right first rib and even a partially collapsed lung from attempting a diving catch. You gotta wonder if this current problem is tied to that past trauma, you know?

Collision Chaos in Phoenix: A Play Gone Sideways

Over in Phoenix, Thursday night's D-backs walk-off 3-2 victory got overshadowed by a scary moment in the top of the fifth. Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy and D-backs first baseman Ildemaro Vargas exited the game after a nasty collision at first base. Muncy, thankfully, passed concussion protocol, though he admitted his head "got banged up a little bit" and he feels "all right." He's out for Friday's game. Vargas also seems okay after X-rays on his thigh, ribs, and neck all came back negative. He was apparently lobbying his manager, Torey Lovullo, to play Friday, but Lovullo said that's unlikely. The play itself was a mess: Muncy grounded the ball, Vargas fielded it behind the bag, and both guys raced from opposite sides. Muncy saw D-backs starter Ryne Nelson was slow off the mound and Vargas had drifted into foul territory, so he instinctively moved to the inside of the bag. But Vargas moved that way too, and neither had time to change course. Muncy described it perfectly: "It felt like neither of us knew which direction we were going to go, and then we both went the wrong direction. And yeah, bang." Vargas, through a translator, thought "perhaps for a second, that it was a foul ball. I'm just trying to make the play." Muncy actually beat him to the bag for a base hit, but both were down for several minutes. They stood under their own power but had to leave. Muncy had some shortness of breath immediately after, but it subsided, and his biggest concern was for Vargas. He said, "Most importantly...I hope he's doing all right. I definitely did not mean to run into him." Nelson, the D-backs pitcher, actually felt the worst about it, blaming himself for not covering first. He even rushed to the clubhouse to check on Vargas, saying, "I failed to do my job in a big spot, which ended up with Vargy getting taken out of the game, so I'm pretty disappointed in myself for that." Whew! That's a lot for one night in baseball, huh? While the M's were dropping a tough one 7-1 to the New York Mets, it's a good reminder that every pitch, every slide, every swing has stakes. We've gotta keep an eye on team health across the league, and for our own guys too. We need players like Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodriguez staying in top form out there. What's next for the Mariners? We've got more baseball coming at T-Mobile Park. You know we'll be there, cheering loud, because that's just what we do in the Emerald City. Go M's!

This article was created with AI assistance and reviewed by Seattle On Tap editorial staff. Always verify information with official team sources.