The Yankees rolled into the All-Star break on a bit of a high, winning five of their last seven. But the mood in Philadelphia on Monday, where Cody Bellinger was preparing for his first Midsummer Classic since 2019, wasn’t exactly celebratory. It was more honest than that.
Bellinger stood at a podium at Citizens Bank Park and did something a lot of players won’t do during All-Star week: He talked about the guys who weren’t there.
Aaron Judge hasn’t played since May 31. The Yankees placed him on the injured list on June 5 after imaging found a stress fracture in his right first rib. They went 18-19 without him. That’s not a coincidence.
But Bellinger made it clear the drop-off isn’t just about what Judge does at the plate. And it’s not just about Judge, either.
Two voices the clubhouse is leaning on — and missing
Giancarlo Stanton hasn’t played since April 24. That’s a right calf strain that turned into a second strain in a different spot on the same leg while he was running bases. Brian Cashman said Stanton has been getting platelet-rich plasma injections and has started running again, but there’s no timeline.
Bellinger put it simply: When those guys talk, people listen.
“Both of those guys are so well-respected in our locker room,” Bellinger said. “When they speak, we listen. Hopefully we can have them back soon.”
The Yankees have Judge, the captain, and Stanton, who carries a quieter but real weight inside that room. Losing both at the same time leaves a hole that isn’t showing up in the box score.
Bellinger himself has become part of that leadership group since signing with New York before the 2025 season. But even he knows the dynamic is different without Judge and Stanton around every day.
Judge’s return is possible around August if the additional testing during the break goes well. Stanton’s is less certain.
The Yankees are still very much in the AL East race. But the steadiness those two bring — the accountability, the presence, the way they hold guys to a standard — that’s not something you can replace with a trade deadline pickup.
Bellinger knows it. So does everyone else in that clubhouse.
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