Aaron Judge shares massive update on elbow injury after Yankees suffer playoff elimination

New York Yankees captain Aaron Judge played through a lingering elbow injury from early August through the club's 5-2 home loss to the Toronto Blue Jays that bounced the Yankees from the American League Division Series on Wednesday night.

Following that defeat, Judge shared a significant update regarding his health.

Aaron Judge will need "some work" on his elbow

"We’ll definitely do some work on it," Judge told reporters, per Max Goodman of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com. "We’ll do some work on it and get it right." 

The two-time AL Most Valuable Player wasn't yet ready to confirm he'll need surgery this fall. 

"I’m not a doctor," Judge said. "I don’t know." 

Judge suffered a flexor strain in his right elbow on July 22 and ultimately missed 10 games. As Jorge Castillo of ESPN noted, Judge temporarily served as a designated hitter when he returned to the lineup but began splitting time between right field and DH in September. The 33-year-old started the Yankees' seven postseason games in the outfield even though his arm strength was visibly impacted by the setback. 

Per SNY's Colin Martin, Judge went 13-for-26 with seven RBI in those seven playoff contests. Against the Blue Jays, the slugger went 9-for-15 with one home run, six RBI, four walks and five runs scored.

Goodman mentioned that Judge almost certainly would miss some time next spring if he needs Tommy John surgery this offseason. As Randy Miller of NJ Advance Media for NJ.com pointed out, that's noteworthy because current Yankees outfielders Cody Bellinger and Trent Grisham could soon leave the club in free agency. Miller predicted that both Bellinger and Grisham will sign elsewhere. 

Aaron Judge says Yankees had "not a good year" 

ESPN stats show that Judge ended the 2025 regular season leading all of MLB with a .331 batting average and a 1.144 OPS. He was fourth with 53 home runs and fifth with 114 RBI. 

Despite posting impressive numbers once again during what's become a Hall of Fame career, Judge understandably had other things on his mind following Wednesday's defeat. 

"You play to win," Judge acknowledged. "And when you don't win, it's not a good year. Just got to put in more work, review the season, see what I can keep doing to try to help this team, put them in the best position to win every single night."