We have seen this movie before.

Aaron Judge has missed at least a quarter of a 162-game season three times. For this discussion, we are ignoring the wonky 60-game COVID 2020 campaign. That leaves five other seasons in which Judge has played the large majority of games. Just to accentuate his importance, in those years he finished fourth for the AL MVP, second and won it three times.

In 2018, Judge missed 54 games with a right wrist fracture. In 2019, he was lost for 54 games with a left oblique strain. In 2023, Judge was out 42 games with a severe sprain of his right big toe.

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On Thursday — after Judge had already been absent for three games — the Yankees announced that he had a stress fracture of his first rib on the right side. The Yankees said their most vital player is expected back this year, but Judge will not even have more imaging for a month at the earliest. So, it seems Judge will be sidelined for, minimally, a quarter season for the fourth time.