Yankees' Aaron Judge to Play Outfield for 1st Time Since Arm Injury vs. Blue Jays

For the first time since July, Aaron Judge will assume his usual position for the New York Yankees.

Per MLB.com's Bryan Hoch, Judge will start in right field against the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday, marking his first time playing outfield since suffering an arm injury in late July. Judge has spent the past month serving as the team's designated hitter.

Judge went on the injured list on July 26 because of an elbow flexor strain, and manager Aaron Boone said he would return as the designated hitter after 10 days. Judge began a throwing program about two weeks after the injury.

Last month, Judge admitted that not being able to play in the outfield had been "brutal."

"I'm a ballplayer," he told reporters. "I want to play both sides of the ball and go out there, making plays on defense, helping my team out. I know hitting's important and all that, but I feel like I can impact this team on both sides, so I can't wait to get back out there."

With Judge taking over as designated hitter, the team's typical DH, Giancarlo Stanton, has subbed in for Judge at right field. Stanton is a bit of a defensive liability, but with 18 homers, 47 RBI and a .971 OPS in 58 games, New York couldn't afford to keep him out of the lineup.

Now, the issue has been solved as the Yankees won't have to sacrifice defense to have both Judge and Stanton in the lineup.

Judge has done more than enough for New York on offense this year, recording 43 home runs and 97 RBI with a .322 batting average and a 1.105 OPS. He'll now once again be able to provide his team with defense as they enter the home stretch of the season.