Tuesday, September 29, 2026 — the Yankees made the hardest roster call of their season, then made it look easy.
Aaron Judge was not on the Yankees’ Wild Card Series roster. He was introduced with his teammates before Game 1 at Yankee Stadium, and then he watched. The Yankees didn’t need him: they beat the Red Sox 9-0 to move within one win of the Division Series.
The Judge Decision
Judge has been out since September 16 with a right calf strain. He made clear he wanted to play — “I’ve been doing a lot of convincing,” he said — but the Yankees decided he wasn’t ready for the first round. Even before the injury, he had gone just 4-for-23 after returning from a fractured rib.
New York instead added Giancarlo Stanton and Trent Grisham to the roster. The message was clear: the Yankees are betting they can win this series without their captain and have him for a potential Division Series.
Rice and Schlittler Take Over
Ben Rice made that bet look smart. He had four hits, two home runs and six RBIs, one of the homers traveling 423 feet. George Lombard Jr. added three hits as the Yankees piled up 12 in all, breaking the game open with two runs in the seventh and five in the eighth.
On the mound, Cam Schlittler was overpowering. He struck out 10 over 6⅓ scoreless innings on 107 pitches and left only after a one-out single in the seventh. The bullpen finished a three-hit shutout in front of 48,437 fans.
Boston starter Payton Tolle took the loss. The Red Sox also had a worrying moment in the sixth, when Roman Anthony left the game for a pinch-hitter without explanation.
A Rematch Turned Around
This series is a rematch of last year’s Wild Card round, which the Yankees won in three games. It was also supposed to be a showcase for Boston’s historic comeback from 32-46. Instead, the Red Sox managed three hits and now face elimination in Game 2.
Boston did get one piece of good news before the game: Garrett Crochet, out since April, was reinstated and added to the bullpen. The Red Sox will need everything he can give them.
The Read
Leaving Judge off the roster was a calculated risk, and it paid off immediately. If the Yankees close this out, they buy their captain more time to heal — and they will have shown that this lineup can win in October without him.
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