Judge's 4-for-23 return: 13 strikeouts in 7 games before a calf strain
Aaron Judge struck out in 13 of 24 plate appearances after returning on Sept. 8, 2026, with a .333 BABIP showing it wasn't bad luck. The sample is tiny, and his strikeout rate was already up before the injury; he is out until at least Oct. 12.
Published: · Figures as of October 3, 2026
Asked: Is Aaron Judge's recent hitting likely to hold up?
Judge's 7 games back were weak and unlikely to be his level
Judge went 4-for-23 with 13 strikeouts in 24 plate appearances over 7 games after returning on September 8, 2026, a .174 average and a 54.2% strikeout rate. That is too small a sample to define him. It also follows a long layoff, and he went back on the injured list on September 18. His report lists a right calf strain with a return date of October 12, 2026, so no further at-bats are scheduled before then. A waiver entry dated today also appears in his news, though he is still listed with the Yankees.
| 2026 regular season | Games | PA | AVG | K rate | BB rate | HR | BABIP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Before injury (through May 31) | 59 | 261 | .248 | 27.6% | 16.1% | 17 | .286 |
| After return (September 8–16) | 7 | 24 | .174 | 54.2% | 4.2% | 1 | .333 |
The slump is not bad luck on balls in play. His BABIP in the 7 games was .333, higher than the .286 before the injury, so hits that were put in play found holes at a normal-to-good rate. The damage came from contact he did not make: 13 of 24 plate appearances ended in a strikeout, with one walk.
| Game date | Strikeouts (strikeouts) |
|---|---|
| 9/8 | 2 |
| 9/9 | 1 |
| 9/11 | 2 |
| 9/12 | 1 |
| 9/13 | 3 |
| 9/14 | 2 |
| 9/16 | 2 |
The strikeout trouble predates the injury. DataBaller's Performance Shift read of June 15, 2026 had his strikeout rate at 28.9% against a two-year baseline of 24.0%, and his walk rate at 16.4% against 18.6%. Sustainability Score, which tests whether a hot or cold stretch is just balls in play, has no read for him this season yet. Based on the rows above, it would have little to say anyway, since his recent BABIP is not out of line.
His 2026 season is well below the last one. Through 66 games he has 57 hits in 237 at-bats, 18 home runs and 85 strikeouts in 285 plate appearances, with 1.89 WAR. In 2025 he had 179 hits in 541 at-bats, 53 home runs and 160 strikeouts in 679 plate appearances, with 9.7 WAR. His 2026 walk and power numbers before the injury (42 walks and 17 home runs in 261 plate appearances) still look like his, and the extra strikeouts are the part that has changed.
Confidence: Medium. The 24-plate-appearance sample is tiny and came right after an 84-game absence. A few more games after the calf heals would settle whether the strikeout rate is real, since he is out until at least October 12.