By Gus "Walk-Off" Fields
The rib finally healed. On Monday night, the Yankees activated Aaron Judge off the injured list, clearing the way for the 34-year-old slugger to return to the lineup Tuesday against the Colorado Rockies.
It has been more than three months since Judge played a game — he went down May 31 with a fractured rib, an injury that stole the heart of a Yankees season already searching for its footing. For a team that leans on his bat the way a house leans on its foundation, the wait has been long.
Judge, a three-time American League MVP, doesn't need a highlight reel to explain his value; his presence in the middle of the order changes how opposing pitchers approach an entire lineup. Getting him back with September underway — and October looming — matters more than any single swing will this week.
The Yankees haven't said how they'll manage his workload in these first games back, and that caution is worth naming: three months is a long layoff, and a rib injury for a hitter is no small thing to trust fully on day one. But activation is activation. The captain is back in the clubhouse, back in the lineup card, and back in a race where every game now counts double.
Colorado awaits Tuesday. So does a fanbase that's been counting the days.
— Compiled from reporting by ESPN.
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