Complete list of injured Yankees players and their status heading into the offseason

No injury hovered over the New York Yankees' 2026 season like a dark cloud more than Aaron Judge's rib fracture. Sadly, amid Judge's attempt to return for the postseason, he suffered a separate calf injury that put his season to bed.

Judge's lost season -- as well as another lost campaign from the ever-injured Giancarlo Stanton -- put a damper on all of the return-to-health narratives within New York's rotation in 2026. Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón started the campaign on the IL but worked their way back into availability later in the year. Max Fried was bothered by a bone bruise for much of the campaign, but he pitched in the postseason and reportedly won't need surgery this offseason.

Stanton is also reportedly healthy at the moment. But the Yankees do have a few players who are still officially injured, Judge included. Let's take a look at their status and what the winter (and, subsequently, 2027) figures to bring for each of them.

Here are the Yankees' injured players and where they stand heading into the offseason

• Aaron Judge
• Clarke Schmidt
• Angel Chivilli
• Fernando Cruz
• Kervin Castro

Aaron Judge

As of the Yankees' end-of-season presser featuring the leadership triumvirate of Aaron Boone/Brian Cashman/Hal Steinbrenner, Judge was still awaiting a follow-up appointment for his rib.

But the stance/news from the organization is that Judge (like Fried) won't need offseason surgery. Cashman asserted during the press conference that an offseason of rest should have Judge ready to go by spring training.

Clarke Schmidt

Schmidt made an appearance for the Yankees in September after a long, 14-month road of recovery from Tommy John. Shortly thereafter, he was shut down by the Yanks all over again (and placed on the 15-day IL) when he experienced right biceps discomfort while warming up in Arizona on September 20.

Boone has said that the thinking behind that decision was to rule Schmidt out from the postseason and have him on track for a full return at the start of 2027. That's still the plan for Schmidt, barring an offseason setback.

Fernando Cruz

Cruz initially hit the 15-day IL in August but was later transferred to the 60-day IL in September once he was diagonised with a partially torn UCL (a diagnosis that he refused to accept).

Cruz is entering the offseason hoping to avoid surgery, which presents a situation to monitor moving forward into 2027. If rest and non-surgical treatment enable Cruz to recover fully, there's a chance he'll be available at the start of next season. But there's also a scenario in which the veteran right-hander doesn't respond fully to non-surgical treatment and/or suffers a setback closer to spring. In sum, his place in the Yankees' 2027 depth chart remains uncertain, and he remains a non-tender candidate.

Kervin Castro and Angel Chivilli

Castro was transferred to the 60-day IL on August 26 with right elbow neuritis. The latest update on Castro on October 8 indicated that he is hoping to avoid surgery.

Chivilli resumed throwing in late August after dealing with a bone spur in his throwing elbow. Like Castro, the nature of his availability for the start of 2027 remains a bit uncertain at this point, as it depends on how he progresses over the winter.

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