YOU WON'T BELIEVE WHAT TIKI BARBER THINKS OF JUDGE'S INJURY

The New York Giants famed running back Tiki Barber played in the NFL for ten years. His career was filled with drama and excitement. He retired in 2006 as the Giants' all-time rushing and reception leader. So when he shared his concern for his New York companion Aaron Judge, I took notice. 

On Monday's edition of the WFAN "Tiki and Tierney" Barber stated, “A toe is not a part of your body that you can get off of and try to stay in shape,” Tiki said. “This is a big problem. I just hope when he does come back and starts to feel better, in his mind, he’s not psychologically trying to protect it. That’s what happens. That’s what happened to me…I jacked up my toe. Deion Sanders, in 1999, jumped on my back and twisted my toe and it probably tore a ligament or something, but I played through it and the swelling, and it calcified, and now I have this big bunion on my toe."

Source: The Athletic

Judge shared with fans on Saturday the depth of his injury, explicitly stating that he has a torn ligament in his right toe and has pain when he walks. According to The Athletic, "Judge has started doing some balance work in the pool but there’s still some caution in progressing too quickly because of where the injury is located. With the injury on his right big toe, that’s where a right-handed hitter pushes off on every swing. DJ LeMahieu dealt with a toe injury on his right foot last season which ultimately caused him to lose his power and ability to hit at a high level in the second half of the season before being ruled out for the playoffs."

Tiki Barber added, “If I was trying to hit a baseball, that’s gonna change my feel…baseball is a precision sport. This is worrisome.” Barber himself dealt with toe problems on multiple occasions during his NFL career from 1997 through the 2006. He provided real perspective as contact sport athlete.

One key difference is that Judge has not played through the injury and has proceeded with caution unlike Barber. But baseball as Barber points out uses a lot more intentionality in foot work, balance and power to drive the ball and pivot in the outfield. It will take time before Judge and his medical staff can truthfully predict his prognosis and future for this season.

According to The Athletic, "The fact Judge is still experiencing pain when he walks is not encouraging news. Dr. Stein, who hasn’t seen Judge’s X-rays or MRI scans and isn’t treating him, said this could indicate a potential lengthier recovery timetable. “I think this is somewhat of a significant development as it tells us the injury may be more severe than initially thought, especially if he still has pain with just walking,” Dr. Stein said. “If it’s a partial tear, it might take six weeks to heal to not having pain with just walking.”

The Yankees are out in Oakland for the next few days and then off to St. Louis before they come home to host their division rival Baltimore Orioles. Time and patience is what we need to practice as Judge rehabs and focuses hard on his recovery. It took some time for his teammate LeMahieu to bounce back from his toe injury. Some still say he is not 100% and without knowing what grade of a tear he has, it is hard to say if his injury is worse than DJ's. 

So don't listen to the PR junkies and Aaron Boone's lines of “I mean, that’s an absolute. I can’t say that about anyone. So, yeah, I feel like he’s going to be back." The injury is serious and it is going to take time to heal, perhaps through the end of the 2023 season. Let's hope for the best but I would rather have a healthy Judge for many more years than a guy who rushes back and has this lingering injury that could end his career early.

--Suzie Pinstripe
BYB Senior Managing Editor
Twitter: @suzieprof