Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge will return from the injury vs. the Pirates

Following a nine-day absence owing to an abdominal ailment, Aaron Judge is making his way back into the New York Yankees lineup.

When the Yankees announced their starting lineup for their spring training game against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Wednesday, they gave away that the right fielder would be back.

Judge’s abdomen was examined by an MRI the day after he felt uneasy during New York’s game against the Atlanta Braves. With two strikeouts in the game, he ended his absence on March 10.

In large part because of a ruptured ligament in his right big toe on June 3, Judge missed 42 games during the 2023 season. Now, he is attempting to recover.

With 106 games played, the 31-year-old concluded the previous season with 98 hits, 75 RBIs, 37 home runs, and a.267 batting average. At least 100 games played, his batting average was the lowest of his career.

The baseball world was taken aback by Shohei Ohtani’s $700 million deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers this offseason. The Dodgers were allegedly taken aback as well.

Before Ohtani’s Dodgers debut in South Korea on Wednesday, a Tom Verducci-written Sports Illustrated feature on the two-way phenom provided fresh insight into how his contract came together a few months prior. Specifically, it revealed how the decision was made to postpone $680 million until after the contract’s expiration.

There isn’t a structure like this in baseball. Because Ohtani’s contract is so team-friendly, there have been discussions about whether MLB should take action to address what many have labeled a loophole when a player agrees to an IOU for 97% of his salary money. To increase the competitiveness of his new squad, the player came up with the most ridiculous concept that could only have originated from him.