PHOENIX — The great Aaron Judge hitting the injured list in the final days of the season with a right calf strain is about the most major blow a team can endure. But it says here it isn’t necessarily a death knell for these Yankees.
Judge isn’t eligible to be activated until game No. 162, and while the Yankees aren’t ruling out a return, it’s hard to imagine he’ll be in game shape even if he does make it back. He certainly didn’t look like Judge the few games back he played.
The fair question today becomes: Can they win the pennant without their captain?
It won’t be easy of course. Call me pollyana, but I say, yes, they can, and it’s not just because October is close to a crapshoot.
