Aaron Judge cleared for 'light activity' after imaging, a significant step for his return to Yankees in 2026

Whether or not Aaron Judge will play baseball again in 2026 has lingered over the New York Yankees all summer.

They got news in the right direction on Tuesday.

Manager Aaron Boone told reporters on Wednesday that Judge underwent imaging on his injured rib Tuesday and has been cleared for "light activity." This includes running and strength training.

He's not yet cleared for baseball activities, most notably swinging a bat. But this is a step in the right direction. And it's a significant step considering that as of Sunday, Judge didn't even have a timetable to undergo further imaging.

Judge has since had that imaging, and the results appear to be encouraging.

Boone was asked about Judge's status after reporters saw him running and stretching on the field prior to Wednesday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals.

"He's been cleared to start some light activity in his progression back," Boone said. "With that's getting outside and doing some running and resistance stuff in the weight room."

The next step from there, per Boone, is getting into baseball activities.

"That'll roll into, slowly but surely, hopefully, starting baseball activities," Boone continued.

The news is encouraging for the Yankees, who would like to not only have their three-time MVP healthy, but back in baseball shape in time for the postseason.

Judge last played on May 31 and has been sidelined since with a stress fracture in his upper-right rib. The lengthy layoff from any baseball activities not only keeps Judge out of the lineup, but puts him in offseason form.

Whenever he's cleared to swing a bat, he'll need to re-hone those skills to work back into game form. In short, medical clearance won't mean that he's immediately ready to jump back into the lineup.

Wednesday's news is the first movement in the right direction since Judge has been sidelined.