Yankees' Aaron Judge doesn't need surgery, Volpe and Rodón had operations and could miss opening day

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NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees star Aaron Judge won't need surgery on his elbow but shortstop Anthony Volpe and left-hander Carlos Rodón had operations this week and could miss opening day.

Judge's throwing was limited after he hurt the flexor tendon in his right elbow in July. Manager Aaron Boone said Thursday an MRI after the team was eliminated last week showed “no surgery is going to be needed.”

Volpe had surgery Tuesday with Dr. Christopher Ahmad to repair the labrum in his left shoulder. Boone said he can start hitting in four months but can't dive on it for six months.

Rodón was operated on by Dr. Neal ElAttrache to remove loose bodies in his left elbow and shave a bone spur. He has eight weeks of no throwing and the start of his season could be delayed by a couple of weeks, Boone said.

Boone said Giancarlo Stanton does not need surgery on his elbows and Gerrit Cole, returning from Tommy John surgery in March, will throw lightly off a mound next week and could be available not far after opening day.

He also said bullpen coach Mike Harkey and first base/infield coach Travis Chapman won't return for 2026 and assistant hitting coach Pat Roessler won't return in that role.

Judge hurt his elbow making a throw at Toronto on July 22. The 33-year-old came back on Aug. 5 from a 10-day stint on the injured list caused by the strained flexor tendon in his right elbow and threw gingerly upon his outfield return on Sept. 5. He built up arm strength and made a 90.2 mph throw from right field in the Division Series opener.

Judge led the major leagues with a .331 average and 1.145 OPS, hitting 53 homers with 114 RBIs and 124 walks. He hit .500 with one homer, seven RBIs and four walks in the postseason as the Yankees were eliminated by Toronto in an AL Division Series.

Volpe hurt the shoulder on May 3 in an unsuccessful attempt for a backhand stab on Christopher Morel’s eighth-inning single, which sparked a two-run rally in Tampa Bay’s 3-2 win. He returned to the lineup two days later but struggled for much of the season.

Volpe, 24, had a cortisone shot during the All-Star break and a second one on Sept. 10, three days after aggravating the shoulder while making a diving stop on Isiah Kiner-Falefa in a 4-3 win over Toronto. Volpe hit .212 with 19 homers and a career-high 72 RBIs and then .192 with one homer, two RBIs and 16 strikeouts in seven postseason games. He went 1 for 15 with 11 strikeouts in the AL Division Series, making out in his last 13 at-bats.

In the field, Volpe made a career-high 19 errors, tied for third-most among major league shortstops.

Rodón, who turns 33 in December, was 18-9 with a 3.09 ERA.

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