Yankees don't expect Judge (calf) to play in Wild Card series

NEW YORK -- New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he does not expect to have Aaron Judge available for the Wild Card series next week, though he did not completely rule out the star right fielder recovering from his calf strain in time to play. "We're planning on him not being a part of that," Boone said Tuesday before the Yankees hosted the Tampa Bay Rays for a doubleheader at Yankee Stadium. Judge was placed on the injured list with a right calf strain Friday, two days after exiting a game against the Minnesota Twins with the injury. Judge and the team declined to specify the severity of the injury through the weekend. On Tuesday, Boone labeled it a "moderate grade" strain. He said Judge received a PPP injection Monday and will avoid physical activity over the "next couple days." "You hear all the time with injuries, we get ranges," Boone said. "Two to four weeks, four to six, all these things. There are ranges for a reason, and we're at a point in the year where obviously we push it a little bit if that was in play. But that's a week away so I'm not expecting it, but I'm not ruling it out either." Judge, 34, sustained the injury in his seventh game back after missing more than three months with a fractured rib. The three-time MVP returned without going on a rehab assignment and went 4 for 23 with 13 strikeouts, one walk, and one home run in 24 plate appearances. He will likely finish his injury-plagued campaign with a .241 batting average, 18 home runs and an .871 OPS in just 66 games after two historic MVP seasons. Heliot Ramos will start in right field for the fourth straight game since Judge's absence in Tuesday's opener. Spencer Jones is another option to play right field in the postseason should Trent Grisham, who is on the injured list with a hamstring injury, return to play center field. The Rays entered Tuesday's doubleheader with a magic number of one to clinch the American League East title with seven games remaining. Barring a Rays collapse, the Yankees will host the Boston Red Sox in the Wild Card series for the second consecutive year.