New York Yankees get bad news on Aaron Judge's mysterious injury: 'We just want clarity'

The New York Yankees have the 22nd-most optimistic fanbase in the MLB. Colin Cowherd asks if Yankees fans should be concerned or hopeful for the upcoming season.

The New York Yankees haven't won the World Series since 2009, and in their one appearance since, lost in five games to their historic rival Los Angeles Dodgers. Even that undersells how bad that series went for New York, with their defensive collapse in the fifth inning of Game 5 becoming the stuff of legend.

But the 2026 season thus far has seemingly set the Yankees up as favorites to return to the Fall Classic. The American League is, to put it mildly, bad. There are just five teams over .500, even as we rapidly approach the halfway point in the season.

While the Tampa Bay Rays are in first place in the division, the Yankees' deficit is just one game and their run differential at +92 is by far the highest in the AL. Their ace, Gerrit Cole, is back on a big-league mound for the first time since 2024. Cam Schlitter has been a revelation. Ben Rice, out of nowhere, is suddenly playing like an MVP candidate.

But it's no secret that the Yankees' fortunes are dependent on reigning AL MVP Aaron Judge.

AARON JUDGE IS ONCE AGAIN ON PACE TO MAKE HISTORY, THREATEN HIS OWN AL SINGLE-SEASON HOME RUN RECORD

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge strikes out during the fifth inning against the Athletics in New York on April 8, 2026. (Heather Khalifa/AP)

Judge has once again been excellent in 2026, though a bit underneath his career norms with a .248/.375/.533 batting line, 17 home runs and a 150 weighted runs created plus and 2.2 wins above replacement. But that all came to a screeching halt when Judge was out of the lineup on Tuesday night against the Athletics.

Initially, the