Yankees' Aaron Judge 'Close' to Return from Toe Injury; Timeline Unclear, Boone Says

New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone is remaining coy about when Aaron Judge might return from the toe injury that has caused him to miss the past 36 games.

Speaking to reporters from Anaheim where the Yankees are playing a three-game series, Boone said the reigning American League MVP is "close" but there's no timeline for his return.

"I do feel like the things he's able to do now are kind of putting him in that close [category], but whether that's days from now or weeks from now, I can't answer," Boone said. "We've got to get through those final hurdles, where he can really do things that allow him to play in the Major Leagues."

Judge suffered a torn ligament in his right big toe when he crashed into the right-field fence at Dodger Stadium making a catch in the eighth inning of a June 3 game.

While surgery is a possibility, Judge has ruled it out until after the season because it would prevent him from playing again in 2023.

"There's talk of surgery, but I don't think we're at that [point]," he explained. "I'm not a doctor. I have no idea. They throw around eight different things."

Speaking to reporters on July 4, Judge noted one big determining factor in him playing is being able to put his full weight on one leg when hitting.

"Besides running is me being able to put 270 pounds on one leg when I'm hitting," Judge said. "Once we build up that strength and get the pain out of there, we're going to be in a good spot. I kind of understand you're going to deal with some pain coming back, so it's just about getting to a point where it's tolerable and we're not setting ourselves back here."

Judge did take part in some baseball activities over the weekend in Colorado. He took batting practice and ran the outfield at Coors Field before the Yankees' games against the Colorado Rockies.

Boone said Tuesday that Judge took another round of on-field batting practice and did some light defensive drills in the outfield prior to their game against the Los Angeles Angels.

The Yankees have lost eight of their last 10 games following Tuesday's 5-1 defeat against the Angels. Their 50-46 record is last in the AL East, but they are only 2.5 games behind the Houston Astros for the final wild card spot.

Judge was having another MVP-caliber season prior to the injury. He has a .291/.404/.674 slash line with 19 homers and 40 RBI in 49 games.