Yankees' Aaron Boone shares hopeful Aaron Judge update

New York Yankees slugger Aaron Judge continues to inch toward his eventual return to the lineup. 

According to SNY, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said during Tuesday's edition of the "Talkin' Yanks" podcast that Judge is "getting close" to once again facing big-league opposition. Judge last played when he suffered a torn ligament in his big right toe on June 3, and Boone was sure to note there's still no official timetable for when he'll have the reigning American League Most Valuable Player back. 

"He’s doing pretty well," Boone said about Judge. "The running progression that he’s going through, he’s able to do a lot more than he was a week ago. I don’t have the date for you, but I feel like it’s getting close."

Judge has been spotted taking batting practice during the Yankees' ongoing road trip coming off the All-Star break. The 31-year-old likely will need to complete multiple rehab and/or simulated games, but Boone didn't completely slam the door shut on Judge facing the New York Mets on July 25 or July 26. 

"The big thing will be building him up and getting the simulations to where his body can make that adjustment," Boone added about his star player. 

The Yankees improved to 35-25 on June 3 but ended Monday at 50-45 and all alone in last place in the AL East standings. Ahead of Tuesday's action, New York trailed the first-place Tampa Bay Rays by nine games in the division race, and the Bronx Bombers were two-and-a-half games back of a wild-card spot. 

Per SNY's Alex Smith, Boone explained during the podcast why he still believes the Yankees can make the playoffs even though they're in last place at this point of the summer months. 

"...We’re not 10 games under, we’re not 15 games under, we’re not 10 games out of the playoffs," Boone said. "We have to climb, and we understand that, and we have to play solid baseball here for the next two-plus months to give ourselves a chance." 

That's all well and good, but Boone seemed to acknowledge when he said that "it’s going to be important to get some more people back" that he realizes the Yankees can't remain Judge-less for much longer if they hope to play meaningful baseball this fall.