Spencer Jones Recalled by Yankees, Aaron Judge Talks 'Made Up' Rib Injury Return Timetable

The New York Yankees are adding outfield reinforcements with Aaron Judge set to miss time with a stress fracture in his rib.

Prior to Friday's game, the Yankees officially placed Judge on the 10-day IL and recalled Spencer Jones from Triple-A with Judge set to be placed on the injured list.

Judge missed the Yankees' three-game series against the Cleveland Guardians this week due to an unspecified injury.

A series of X-rays, a CT scan and an MRI determined on Thursday that Judge was dealing with a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side.

The Yankees announced Judge will be shut down for four to six weeks before undergoing new imaging, then a potential return-to-play timeline will be determined.

Despite the team laying out the timeline, Judge told reporters on Friday he doesn't "like talking time tables" because they are "all made up" and things can change as time goes on.

Judge went on to say he believes the injury occurred diving to avoid colliding with a teammate during an April 27 game in Texas, then the pain and discomfort got to the point last weekend against the Athletics that he stopped taking pregame swings before the Yankees shut him down.

The timeline for the injury makes sense based on Judge's splits. He was hitting .262/.392/.645 through April 28, but slashed .234/.357/.421 in 29 games since then.

Jones, a first-round pick in the 2022 MLB draft, made his big-league debut on May 8 after Jasson Dominguez landed on the IL with a shoulder injury. The 25-year-old struggled in his first exposure to MLB pitching, slashing .167/.259/.167 with 12 strikeouts in 27 plate appearances.

Judge's absence creates another huge void in the middle of the lineup for the Yankees. Giancarlo Stanton has been out since April 24 due to a calf strain, though he did take part in a batting practice before Tuesday's series-opener against Cleveland.

The two-time reigning AL MVP, Judge is hitting .248/.375/.533 with 17 homers in 261 plate appearances this season. He is one of two Yankees with at least 10 homers, along with Ben Rice (17).

Jones is hitting .269/.378/.571 with 13 home runs in 43 games at Triple-A. He will slot in as the starting right fielder for manager Aaron Boone as the Yankees open a series against the Boston Red Sox in the Bronx on Friday night.