Judge Pushes to Play in Yankees’ Wild Card Opener

Aaron Judge is pushing to play in the New York Yankees’ Wild Card opener against the Boston Red Sox, but the team had not announced Monday whether he would be available for Tuesday’s game at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees were continuing to assess the captain’s recovery from a right calf strain, with manager Aaron Boone saying the team would consult trainers and medical staff before deciding. Judge said he wanted to be on the field, particularly for Game 1, while also stressing that he needed to be healthy for the postseason stretch. “I’ve been doing a lot of convincing, I feel like, so I’m going to keep doing that,” Judge said Monday. He said he had not run the bases since the injury, though he had been hitting and working on an antigravity treadmill. He hoped to return as an outfielder, but said he would accept whatever role the team considered best. Judge’s availability remained uncertain less than two weeks after he suffered the calf strain. He had returned in September from a lengthy absence caused by a rib injury, but played only seven games before the calf problem sent him back to the injured list.