Annoying twist of fate ruins Yankees’ chance to replace Aaron Judge with Spencer Jones

The sky is no longer fully falling in the Bronx. It's just sprinkling a little. After an afternoon spent wondering whether Aaron Judge was about to become the sixth Yankees position player to undergo Tommy John surgery since 2017, New York got a temporary reprieve, as Judge will instead miss 10+ days with a flexor strain.

That leaves a short-term hole to be filled rather than a power vacuum, and whether it's true or whether the Yankees just want you to believe it, it seems they seriously considered Spencer Jones for the job anyway.

It doesn't get more scorching than Jones at Triple-A lately - well, at least until Friday. Jones homered 13 times in his first 19 games at the level, including a trio of bombs in one game that stole the narrative this week before Nick Kurtz laced up his spikes. That heater was interrupted Friday by back spasms that knocked Jones from the lineup.

Jones missed Saturday's game with the same ailment. According to SNY's Andy Martino, that minor injury was the primary thing standing between him and a promotion. It won't cost him much time, but it will cost him a big-league opportunity at quite possibly the hottest point of his life. Brutal.

Yankees' Spencer Jones won't replace Aaron Judge after his flexor strain (due to back spasms)

At least our instincts were correct here; the Yankees don't see anyone on the market worth trading Jones for this summer, especially after they hopped out of the Eugenio Suarez mix.

New York will turn instead to either Everson Pereira or Bryan De La Cruz, both of whom are on the 40-man roster and do not require any manic shuffling (Jones is not). Pereira, who struggled in a 2023 cameo in a lost season, likely deserves this bump. He has 19 homers and an .869 OPS in 258 at-bats from the right side of the plate.

Would the Yankees really have promoted Jones if he wasn't battling a minor ailment? There's plenty of reason to doubt they would've, and now they've escaped even having to really answer for their decision. But, if you believe Martino, it might've been the perfect storm - if not for a back knot.