New York Yankees Wiretap
The Yankees' days of carrying only left-handed-hitting catchers are over, at least for now.
The team optioned catcher J.C. Escarra to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre late Friday night after a 5-3 loss to the Boston Red Sox. A corresponding move was not announced, but the Yankees plan to call up right-handed-hitting catcher Ali Sánchez on Saturday, sources told ESPN.
New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge has been diagnosed with a stress fracture in the first rib on his right side, the club announced Thursday night. The team expects Judge to return at some point this season and will conduct additional imaging in four to six weeks.
Judge missed his third straight game Thursday after undergoing a CT scan that morning. He had also received an MRI earlier in the week following a meeting with a specialist. The injury was initially detected during testing on Monday's off day.
The three-time AL MVP is batting .248 with 17 home runs and 38 RBIs this season. He has hit just one homer in his last 18 games since May 10, snapping an 11-game drought with a walk-off two-run drive against Tampa Bay on May 24.
Judge suffered a similar stress fracture in a right rib in March 2020, an injury that originated from a diving play in September 2019. He avoided missing time on that occasion due to the pandemic-shortened season.
Last season, Judge won the AL batting title with a career-best .331 average to go with 53 home runs and 114 RBIs in 152 games. He did miss 10 games with a right elbow flexor strain but avoided surgery after receiving a platelet-rich plasma injection.
Aaron Judge was out of the lineup Thursday for a third straight game and the New York Yankees were awaiting clarity about a bone bruise in one of the slugger's right ribs that is causing right shoulder pain.
"I absolutely expect something in the next couple of hours," manager Aaron Boone said before the Yankees concluded a three-game series with the Cleveland Guardians. "He went for more testing today just because he's got edema there. So, they want to get [the most] specific images they can to try and see exactly what we have."
New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge was out of the starting lineup for Tuesday's game against Cleveland because of a bone bruise in his upper right rib that he feels in his right shoulder, and he might miss a few days.
"He's been kind of the last couple of weeks kind of dealing with some shoulder soreness, just kind of more nagging," manager Aaron Boone said before the series opener against the Guardians. "Then over the weekend, the last couple of games in Sacramento, I think it became a little more than just that, where I noticed with some swings and stuff. It became a little more than just nagging. I think it was affecting him."
Boone said tests on the team's off day on Monday revealed the bruise. Judge met with team physician Dr. Christopher Ahmad later Tuesday, and following the Yankees' 9-4 loss, Boone said Judge will see a specialist on Wednesday.
One big inning was more than enough Sunday for the New York Yankees.
Fueled by a fiery pep talk from captain Aaron Judge, the Yankees scored 13 runs in the third and beat the Athletics 13-8, finishing one run shy of the highest-scoring inning in the storied history of the franchise.
"Remarkable," manager Aaron Boone said. "Glad we were able to make it stand up. Obviously, a lot of really good things offensively. ... I don't think the prettiest game on either side, necessarily. But we were able to make a really outstanding inning stand up."
Yankees manager Aaron Boone watched the hits begin to pile up on the massive, crown-shaped scoreboard beyond the centerfield wall at Kauffman Stadium, and he knew that his team was doing something impressive against the Kansas City Royals.
He didn't know until afterward that it was something historic.
Yes, there were six home runs, including two from Amed Rosario. And the Yankees put up 24 hits in the 15-1 romp, their most since a game against Baltimore in July 2011. But what set the performance apart from all others Tuesday night -- including all those games played by Lou Gehrig and Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle -- was this simple fact: For the first time in their storied history, the Yankees got at least two hits from every single player in their starting lineup.
Aaron Judge hit a fly to right field, briefly watched the ball go over the wall and dropped his bat at first base before starting his trot.
His long home run drought was over, and there was a celebration waiting for him at the plate.
Judge ended a career-high, 11-game slump without an RBI, hitting a two-run homer off Kevin Kelly in the ninth inning that lifted the New York Yankees over the Tampa Bay Rays 2-0 Sunday for their first win in five games this year against their American League East rival.
"That's just a great swing from him," manager Aaron Boone said.
Gerrit Cole crouched behind the mound, stared at the dirt and after a 569-day absence climbed on the rubber in a major league game that mattered.
"Just let it rip downrange and see what we got," the New York Yankees ace thought to himself.
Cole allowed two hits over six shutout innings Friday night in his return from elbow ligament reconstruction surgery. He left with a 1-0 lead that the Yankees wasted in a 4-2 loss to the major-league-best Tampa Bay Rays.
"It was almost like a second debut," the 35-year-old right-hander said. "It was nice to get back in the fire."
With nearly two months of the 2026 season complete, 22 players from the preseason MLB top 100 prospect list have graduated from eligibility, reshuffling the rankings ahead of what figures to be an active trade deadline season.
Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Jesus Made, 19, moves to the top spot after posting 90th percentile exit velocities that rank among big league averages despite playing in Double-A. His ability to control the strike zone and his defensive profile stand out, though scouts note his swing produces insufficient lift to translate his raw power into home run totals. If that changes in the second half, a significant ranking jump could follow.
Among the most notable movers is Boston Red Sox shortstop Franklin Arias, who climbs from 36th to sixth after posting improved exit velocity and lift rates while maintaining contact. Athletics shortstop Leo De Vries jumps to second after his profile helped pry All-Star closer Mason Miller from Oakland. Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Seth Hernandez rises from 49th to seventh after slider and fastball shape improvements unlocked his ceiling.
Notable graduates from the list include the previous top two prospects, Konnor Griffin and Kevin McGonigle, along with Samuel Basallo, JJ Wetherholt, Bubba Chandler, Carson Benge, Andrew Painter, and Carson Williams, among others.
Seven players currently on active big league rosters remain eligible but could graduate within weeks.
60FV
1. Jesus Made, SS, Milwaukee Brewers (Previous: 3)
2. Leo De Vries, SS, Athletics (Previous: 11)
3. Colt Emerson, SS, Seattle Mariners (Previous: 6)
4. Max Clark, CF, Detroit Tigers (Previous: 8)
5. Sebastian Walcott, SS, Texas Rangers (Previous: 5)
6. Franklin Arias, SS, Boston Red Sox (Previous: 36)
7. Seth Hernandez, RHP, Pittsburgh Pirates (Previous: 49)
8. Eli Willits, SS, Washington Nationals (Previous: 41)
9. Kade Anderson, LHP, Seattle Mariners (Previous: 16)
10. George Lombard Jr., SS, New York Yankees (Previous: 20)
11. Travis Bazzana, 2B, Cleveland Guardians (Previous: 23)
12. Walker Jenkins, CF, Minnesota Twins (Previous: 9)
13. Trey Yesavage, RHP, Toronto Blue Jays (Previous: 14)
14. A.J. Ewing, CF, New York Mets (Previous: 28)
15. Rainiel Rodriguez, C, St. Louis Cardinals (Previous: 19)
16. Aidan Miller, SS, Philadelphia Phillies (Previous: 10)
17. Ryan Sloan, RHP, Seattle Mariners (Previous: 24)
55 FV
18. Josue De Paula, LF, Los Angeles Dodgers (Previous: 21)
19. Josuar Gonzalez, SS, San Francisco Giants (Previous: 30)
20. Ethan Salas, C, San Diego Padres (Previous: 110)
21. Ryan Waldschmidt, CF, Arizona Diamondbacks (Previous: 63)
22. Thomas White, LHP, Miami Marlins (Previous: 18)
23. Alfredo Duno, C, Cincinnati Reds (Previous: 29)
24. Connor Prielipp, LHP, Minnesota Twins (Previous: 54)
25. Caleb Bonemer, 3B, Chicago White Sox (Previous: 34)
26. Luis Pena, SS, Milwaukee Brewers (Previous: 26)
27. Ethan Holliday, SS, Colorado Rockies (Previous: 66)
28. Liam Doyle, LHP, St. Louis Cardinals (Previous: 50)
29. Tyler Bremner, RHP, Los Angeles Angels (Previous: 56)
30. Theo Gillen, CF, Tampa Bay Rays (Previous: 92)
31. Ralphy Velazquez, 1B, Cleveland Guardians (Previous: 33)
32. Jett Williams, SS, Milwaukee Brewers (Previous: 32)
33. JoJo Parker, SS, Toronto Blue Jays (Previous: 52)
34. Zyhir Hope, RF, Los Angeles Dodgers (Previous: 40)
50 FV
35. Cam Caminiti, LHP, Atlanta Braves (Previous: 53)
36. Jonah Tong, RHP, New York Mets (Previous: 31)
37. Noah Schultz, LHP, Chicago White Sox (Previous: 96)
38. Kaelen Culpepper, SS, Minnesota Twins (Previous: 79)
39. Angel Genao, SS, Cleveland Guardians (Previous: 80)
40. Gage Jump, LHP, Athletics (Previous: 42)
41. Jhonny Level, SS, San Francisco Giants (Previous: 84)
42. Emmanuel Rodriguez, CF, Minnesota Twins (Previous: 97)
43. Josh Hammond, SS, Kansas City Royals (Previous: 132)
44. Edward Florentino, CF, Pittsburgh Pirates (Previous: 78)
45. Eduardo Quintero, CF, Los Angeles Dodgers (Previous: 37)
46. Anthony Eyanson, RHP, Boston Red Sox (Previous: NR)
47. Eduardo Tait, C, Minnesota Twins (Previous: 38)
48. Didier Fuentes, RHP, Atlanta Braves (Previous: 88)
49. River Ryan, RHP, Los Angeles Dodgers (Previous: 125)
50. Jamie Arnold, LHP, Athletics (Previous: 60)
Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, sidelined since undergoing Tommy John surgery last year, will make his season debut Friday against the Tampa Bay Rays.
New York had been weighing whether to have Cole make a seventh and final rehab start as planned or end the rehab assignment slightly early to start Friday. The club, in concert with the training staff and Cole, decided he was ready after a strong outing Saturday checked the remaining boxes for activation.
"It's just a blessing to play the game and you get a better sense of that once you're removed from it," Cole said. "Just getting back into that environment, and not taking that for granted, it's exciting for sure."
