Aaron Judge still stuck in ‘brutal’ Yankees waiting game after taking big step toward outfield return

Aaron Judge finally threw to bases — actually just second base — but there remains no verdict on when that will actually happen in a game.

Nearly five hours before first pitch Sunday, Judge was in right field at Yankee Stadium taking the next step in his throwing program on the way back from a right flexor strain, fielding balls and throwing to second base or a cutoff man for around 5-10 minutes.

The reigning AL MVP said it was higher intensity than his previous catch play — he had been stretched out to 150 feet for more than a week — but he was by no means going full bore.

The Yankees are still trying to figure out when the right time is to have Judge begin playing the field again without putting him at a high risk of reinjuring himself.

“I think that’s the name of the game right now, is making sure I can push the volume, push the level of it [but] also make sure I’m recovered enough to go out there and keep pushing it the next day,” Judge said. “Our training staff does a great job with that, so they’re helping me try to get out there as fast as I can. I think they all know I want to be back out there.”

Judge called the waiting game “brutal” before he served as DH again in the series finale against the Red Sox, with Giancarlo Stanton starting in right field for the third time in four games — a situation that also comes with an injury risk, with the Yankees having to decide between the lesser of two evils as they chase a playoff spot.