The reigning MVP and Cy Young Award winners in the American League both are on the injured list.
One is on his way back, the other went on the IL just over the last few days.
Aaron Judge has a stress fracture in a rib that will keep the slugging outfielder out of the lineup for the New York Yankees for a while. The Detroit Tigers have been without ace Tarik Skubal for over a month, but he threw five innings in a rehab appearance for Class A West Michigan.
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Even though Skubal might be back soon, you’d rather be the Yankees than the Tigers right now. New York has taken advantage of a Tampa Bay slump and now trails the Rays by percentage points atop the AL East. Detroit, meanwhile, is 12 games under .500. The amount of mediocrity in the AL means the Tigers are by no means out of postseason contention, but they are tied for last in the AL Central even after winning five of their last six.
The last time Skubal pitched was April 29. Since then, Detroit is 12-23.
Judge has played at least 148 games in four of his last five seasons. The one time he didn’t — 2023 — the Yankees missed the playoffs. They’ve lost three of their last five without him this month.
While Yankees and Tigers fans anxiously await the chance to watch Judge and Skubal again, here are a few other significant injuries that could affect postseason races:
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— Cal Raleigh, Mariners. After his 60-homer season last year, Raleigh just is batting .161 with seven home runs in 2026, and he’s been out since May 13 because of a right oblique strain. Raleigh has been doing pregame work but likely will need a rehab assignment before returning. Seattle still leads a weak AL West without him.
— Elly De La Cruz, Reds. The star shortstop went on the IL with a right hamstring strain. The timeline to return was 2-4 weeks. Cincinnati is in last place in the NL Central but just 2 1/2 games out of a wild card.
— Francisco Lindor, Mets. New York’s shortstop is out with a left calf strain and hasn’t played since April 22. The Mets have been better of late but are still five games out of a wild card.
Trivia time
Philadelphia’s Cristopher Sánchez pushed his consecutive shutout innings streak to 50 2/3 before it was snapped against San Diego. Orel Hershiser holds the record with a 59-inning run in 1988.
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Hershiser also was facing the Padres when he broke Don Drysdale’s mark. How many scoreless innings did he throw in that game to reach 59?
Performance of the week
Detroit’s Dillon Dingler hit two homers, a double and a single in a 10-9 win over Tampa Bay.
Comeback of the week
Houston scored six runs in the bottom of the eighth to beat Pittsburgh 11-9. The Astros trailed 8-3 in the seventh.
Isaac Paredes hit a two-run homer for Houston in the seventh, but with the score 9-5 in the eighth, Pittsburgh’s win probability was up to 98.1% — according to Baseball Savant — after the first two Houston batters struck out.
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Then the decisive rally began: Nick Allen and Christian Vázquez hit back-to-back doubles. After Jeremy Peña walked, Yordan Alvarez and Christian Walker hit consecutive RBI singles. The tying run then came home on a wild pitch before Cam Smith hit a two-run triple to put Houston ahead.
Trivia answer
Hershiser was able to break Drysdale’s record because his final start of 1988 went to extra innings. He threw 10 scoreless frames in that game against the Padres on Sept. 28, 1988.
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