


TAMPA — Aaron Judge said he would resume swinging on Friday after skipping four straight days following the MRI exam he had on his abdomen Monday.
Judge said prior to Friday night’s game at Steinbrenner Field against Pittsburgh that he was scheduled to hit in the batting cage — and not on the field, as is customary.
“I think just cage work today,’’ Judge said. “The main goal is to be game-ready for Opening Day [in Houston on March 28]. I’m just gonna work towards that.”
Asked if he would play Saturday against Atlanta, as manager Aaron Boone had said was “penciled in,” Judge responded: “I don’t know. We’ll see when that day comes.”
Judge hasn’t appeared in a game since taking just two at-bats on Sunday, when he struck out twice.
He underwent an MRI exam on Monday, which he said came back “clean.”
“All I’ll say is we’re feeling pretty good,’’ said Judge, who added he had only one MRI on the area.
He called the test “precautionary” and added there’s “no need to risk stuff in spring training.”
Despite his seeming lack of concern, Judge has missed time with various core muscle injuries, including twice for strained obliques, most recently in 2019.