Alarm bells are sounding in the heads of New York Yankees fans everywhere.
Yankees star slugger Aaron Judge has been out of the lineup since May 31 due to a bone bruise near his right shoulder. On Thursday, a very concerning sign emerged about Judge’s injury.
Judge has been referred to Dr. Gregory Pearl in Dallas, Texas, Bryan Hoch of MLB.com reports. Dr. Pearl is a physician who specializes in thoracic outlet syndrome.
Otherwise known as “TOS,” thoracic outlet syndrome is an extremely worrisome condition for professional athletes. It involves nerves or blood vessels between the neck and shoulder becoming compressed and can often result in surgery that requires a lengthy recovery.
Judge, 34, is the reigning back-to-back AL MVP. Through 59 games this season though, Judge has not quite looked like himself, batting .248 with 17 home runs and 38 RBIs on a very modest .907 OPS (his lowest mark since the pandemic-shortened 2020 season).
Obviously, the referral to Dr. Pearl does not necessarily mean that Judge has thoracic outlet syndrome as it could simply be a sign of due diligence to get to the bottom of the issue. But given the number of prominent MLB stars who have had their careers derailed by the condition, the referral is not at all a development that Yankees fans want to see right now with Judge.
Update: Judge has been diagnosed with a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side, the Yankees announced late Thursday night. He will be reimaged in roughly 4-to-6 weeks but is expected to return at some point this season.
