Aaron Judge injury update is concerning for Yankees amid Guardians series

The New York Yankees will be without slugger Aaron Judge for the second consecutive game, as the right fielder is absent from Wednesday's starting lineup against the Cleveland Guardians. 

Yankees manager Aaron Boone revealed on Tuesday that Judge is dealing with a bone bruise in his right rib cage, an injury that's also affecting his shoulder when he swings. 

"The Yankees are not ruling out a stint on the injured list, but for the moment, Judge is considered day to day," MLB.com's Bryan Hoch wrote on Wednesday. 

Losing Judge for an extended period of time would hurt the Yankees in more ways than one. He is the leader of the clubhouse, and the New York's offense typically performs much better with him in the lineup. 

The latter part of the previous sentence may be obvious, as Judge has won back-to-back AL MVPs and three overall. 

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"Boone said that Judge has been managing nagging soreness in his right shoulder for 'the last couple of weeks,' but the manager said he sensed it appeared to become more of a problem during the series against the Athletics," Hoch reported. 

According to Hoch, the Yankees captain is scheudled to see a specalist for an additional opinion on the injury.

Per Hoch, Boone said the place that is ailing Judge is in a "unique spot," which is clearly impacting his capabilites on the field. The Yankees captain is 14-for-68 with just one home run and 19 strikeouts since May 11. 

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