Yankees' Aaron Judge Not Expected to Play OF vs. Rays, Boone Updates Elbow Injury

New York Yankees superstar Aaron Judge, who has exclusively been a designated hitter since returning to the lineup after suffering a flexor strain in his right elbow, will not play in the outfield for his team's road series at the Tampa Bay Rays this week.

Manager Aaron Boone relayed that news on WFAN Radio (h/t Bryan Hoch of MLB.com).

Boone also gave some extra insight on the matter.

Judge missed 10 games before returning on Aug. 5. For the season, he's hitting an MLB-high .333 (1.134 OPS) with 39 home runs and 91 RBI.

Since Judge's last game in the outfield (July 25), the Yankees have mostly rolled with Cody Bellinger in right. However, New York has started Giancarlo Stanton in right for four games (Aug. 9, 11-13), and trade deadline acquisition José Caballero just started a pair of games during the Yankees' road sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals.

Stanton, a designated hitter these days, has been called into outfield duty given the situation. He's expected to play right in the Tampa series, per Boone.

The Yankees are in Tampa for games on Tuesday and Wednesday before returning home for a crucial four-game series with the Boston Red Sox from Thursday through Sunday. It appears Boone left the door open for Judge to play right field during that series.

New York has won five of six games to move to 67-57, good enough for one of the three American League wild card spots at the moment. The Yankees were once 17 games over .500 (42-25) but have since gone 25-32.

Having Judge's bat in the lineup again certainly helps matters as New York looks for its first World Series title since 2009. Obviously, his throwing arm may not be 100 percent, especially given Boone's comments, but Judge anchoring the lineup is a huge win for the team.

Now New York hopes it can continue the positive momentum from the St. Louis series into Tampa Bay, beginning Tuesday.