When Aaron Judge went on the injured list, the New York Yankees lost much more than the leading candidate for the American League Most Valuable Player. A reality that had remained hidden for much of the season was also exposed: the team's offensive structure depends too much on its captain.

Injuries are part of baseball, especially in a 162-game season. However, organizations designed to compete for the World Series usually have enough depth to absorb temporary losses. In the case of the Yankees, the weeks without Judge have raised doubts about whether Brian Cashman built a roster capable of withstanding the absence of their best player.

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The numbers show the decline.

The numbers reflect a radical change. With Aaron Judge in the lineup, Aaron Boone's squad was one of the most productive teams in Major League Baseball. However, since the captain was placed on the injured list, the offense has lost consistency in practically every statistical category.

Data provided by Statmuse

The most revealing statistic is probably the wRC+. Before the injury, the Yankees had a collective wRC+ of 115, the second-best in Major League Baseball. Since then, it has dropped to 93, a performance 7% below the MLB average, reflecting the team's offensive collapse. The decline also translated into a drop to 27th place in offensive average and the last place in the Majors in on-base percentage during that period.

Aaron Boone had to reinvent the lineup.

The captain's absence forced the coaching staff to practically change the entire offensive lineup.

Cody Bellinger took on the role of the main producer in several games, while Paul Goldschmidt took on a more important role in run-scoring situations. At the same time, young players like Jasson Domínguez and Ben Rice received offensive responsibilities much greater than anticipated at the start of the season.

The problem for the New York Yankees is that none of those pieces were designed to replace Judge's impact. Each move ended up weakening another sector of the lineup and reducing offensive depth, while at the same time putting pressure on the aforementioned names because they are not fulfilling the tasks they now have to perform in the lineup, creating that negative effect that can lead to losses.

Now, the situation has worsened even more with Cody Bellinger's injury, leaving Aaron Boone without two of his top hitters in the midst of a postseason battle.

A concerning dependency

Every franchise has a star around whom the sports project revolves. However, championship teams often show that they can survive for a reasonable period without their best player. With the New York Yankees, the exact opposite has happened.

Judge's injury exposed an excessive dependence on a single batter, the lack of another bat capable of carrying the offense, and undue pressure on young players who are still going thru their consolidation process.

Therefore, Brian Cashman's strategy heading into the Trade Deadline seems to have changed. What a few weeks ago was the search for a complementary reinforcement now points to the need to incorporate an impactful bat that reduces the dependence on "The Judge" and strengthens a lineup that, without its captain, has proven to be far from the level of a serious World Series contender.

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