Boone says Judge 'close,' but leaves it open to interpretation

ANAHEIM -- Aaron Judge took on-field batting practice and performed light defensive drills in the outfield on Tuesday afternoon at Angel Stadium, and Yankees manager Aaron Boone said that he believes the reigning American League Most Valuable Player is “close” to returning.

The caveat, Boone said, is that he cannot pin down a timetable for when Judge will be ready to play in a big league game. Judge has been out since June 3 with a torn ligament in his right big toe that could require surgery after the season.

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“I do feel like the things he’s able to do now are kind of putting him in that close [category], but whether that’s days from now or weeks from now, I can’t answer,” Boone said. “We’ve got to get through those final hurdles, where he can really do things that allow him to play in the Major Leagues.”

The workload on Tuesday in Anaheim was similar to what Judge has been doing for several days, including during the Yankees’ weekend series against the Rockies at Coors Field.

Judge’s next steps, according to Boone, would be “continuing to do things from a running standpoint -- cutting, stopping, starting, those kinds of things,” in addition to logging more at-bats in live batting practice and eventually game scenarios.

Boone said that he envisions Judge playing some outfield when he returns, but Judge will probably appear more as a designated hitter than he had prior to the injury. Judge has played 38 games in the outfield and 11 as a DH this year.

“I would think in the early days, there’d probably be more DHs in there than normally for him,” Boone said. “My expectation right now would be [that Judge will play] as both.”

Judge repeatedly has said that he expects to play through some discomfort upon his return and that his biggest obstacle will be running at full speed.

“He’s running pretty well,” Boone said. “It’s one thing to run straight ahead. It’s another thing to be cutting and stopping and starting, and the unexpected things that can happen when you’re in the midst of a game.

“And then also being able to be at a really high level in the box -- it's one thing to be taking BP and getting your swing off. It's another thing to be in a game and taking a difficult pitch, and holding the check swing, and all those things that you need to be in a real comfortable spot to do.”