Cashman: Yankees GM optimistic Aaron Judge, James Paxton will be ready for season

The coronavirus delay for Major League Baseball has been all together awful, but for some injured players, it has allowed them to recover. That appears to be the case for the Yankees stars, Aaron Judge and James Paxton. Both players have healed from their injuries and appear ready for the shortened season, per Joel Sherman and Bob Nightengale.

Judge has been dealing with a cracked rib since last season, but the time off has allowed it to heal. Judge was seen hitting off a tee and not holding anything back a week ago and Brian Cashman is “very optimistic” that he’ll be ready to go for opening day.

James Paxton required a microscopic lumbar discectomy back in February, but all systems have been go for a while now. Paxton will be a free agent next season, so he is hoping for a similar or better year than 2019, when he put up a 15-6 record, 3.82 ERA and 186 strikeouts in 150.2 innings pitched.

Both players will be a big boost for the Yankees shot to succeed in the shortened season. If any team benefitted from the delay, the Yankees are it.