Yankees: Aaron Judge’s comeback for Braves series will save New York

Yankees OF Aaron Judge is set to be activated off the 10-day IL.

To say that fans in the Bronx could use some good news after the last seven days produced seemingly endless gut punches would be an understatement. We unfortunately watched the Yankees get humbled at home by Tampa Bay, as New York dropped all three games against the AL East rivals.

To add injury to insult — only the Yankees would make that make sense– New York was forced to place the likes of Gleyber Torres, Zack Britton and James Paxton on the injured list, piling onto the club’s already lengthy list of inactive stars.

After a long weekend off following the cancellation of the Subway Series, the Yankees could use an injection of energy heading into their two-game set against the Atlanta Braves, who are currently leading the NL East.

Well, it just so happens that Aaron Judge confirmed moments ago that he’s ready to return and will be activated off the 10-day IL for the big series.

That is EXACTLY what this team needed amid its three-game losing streak and impossibly bad injury luck. It’s not at all an exaggeration to say that Judge’s return will save New York. Not that the Yankees are in need of saving, but Tampa is rolling and the division race needs to be kept as close as possible as we head into September.

As we’ve seen before he hit the shelf with a calf strain, Judge’s presence in the lineup is the very definition of essential. It’s hard to put into words, but he just makes everyone around him more relaxed and composed. Through 17 games, the two-time All-Star is hitting .290/.343/.758 with 9 home runs, 20 RBI and a 1.101 OPS and was leading MLB in a number of major categories before going down.

We’re not trying to put a world of pressure on Judge, but it’s clear that he knows what his return means for this team. Expect the Yankees to play with a newfound spark once they return to the diamond on Tuesday against Atlanta.

The all-world slugger is back, and not a minute too soon.